| SEASON | CAREER |
| W5 | 11 |
| L7 | 16 |
| G19 | 57 |
| IP100.0 | 199.0 |
| BB41 | 79 |
| SO58 | 108 |
| SEASON | CAREER |
| W12 | 16 |
| L3 | 6 |
| G19 | 98 |
| IP124.0 | 218.0 |
| BB31 | 68 |
| SO114 | 225 |
A.J. Pierzynski and the Chicago White Sox hit for a lot of power over the weekend. Continuing that trend could make it especially easy for Chris Sale in his return to the mound.
Pitching on extended rest, Sale will go for his 13th win Monday night when the White Sox host the Kansas City Royals .
Chicago (59-48) took two of three from Los Angeles over the weekend, winning 4-2 Sunday for its ninth win in 12 games overall and 12th in 14 at home.
After Kevin Youkilis ' third homer in two games knotted the game at 1, Pierzynski tied the franchise record by homering in his fifth straight game with a go-ahead two-run pinch-hit homer in the seventh.
The catcher is the sixth White Sox player since 1921 to homer in five straight games and first since Paul Konerko did so in 2011.
"I'm not supposed to be doing this so just ride it out as long as you can, enjoy it and have fun with it," said Pierzynski, who is 4 for 12 with a homer against scheduled Royals starter Luis Mendoza .
Pierzynski, whose 21 homers are a career high, is adding to the White Sox's power numbers. They are third in the majors with 134 homers after hitting eight in the series against the Angels and have 16 in their last six home games.
They continue their homestand against the Royals (45-62), with both teams taking two of three at home in their previous two series this season.
Sale (12-3, 2.61 ERA) goes in the opener of the three-game series, making his first start since July 27 against Texas, when he allowed five runs and struck out six in 6 1-3 innings of a 9-5 victory.
The White Sox are being cautious with their hard-throwing left-hander, who had given up five runs in each of his last two starts while his velocity dipped.
"I didn't expect myself to be throwing hard the entire time, especially getting into August and September," Sale, third in the AL in ERA, told the team's official website. "For right now, it's just finding a way."
Sale has split two starts against the Royals. On July 15, he allowed one run and a season-high 10 hits in eight innings of a 2-1 victory.
Mendoza (5-7, 4.32) lost to Sale last month, surrendering two runs and four hits in 7 1-3 innings. He picked up a victory at Chicago in May and has won two of his last three starts overall after limiting Cleveland to two runs in 7 1-3 innings of a 5-2 win Wednesday.
The AL-worst Royals avoided being swept by Texas with a 7-6 win in 10 innings Sunday. Eric Hosmer scored the winning run in the 10th on a throwing error - the second in the inning - as Kansas City overcame three errors of its own.
"Ugly, come on. How can you call that game ugly?" manager Ned Yost said. "It's a beautiful win. Against a team of that caliber and as hard fought as this series was and for us to come up with nothing going into today, it's a beautiful win."
The Royals open a seven-game road trip Monday. They have lost five straight and 14 of 17 away from home, and their starters are 3-12 with a 7.17 ERA over those 17 road games.
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AVG
HRRUNSSBSOBBOBPSLGOPS
VS.
| HITTERS | AB | AVG | H | HR | RBI | BB | SO | OBP | OPS | SLG |
| Yuniesky Betancourt | 2 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| Billy Butler | 4 | .250 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | .400 | 1.400 | 1.000 |
| Jarrod Dyson | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| Alcides Escobar | 4 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| Jeff Francoeur | 1 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .500 | .500 | .000 |
| Chris Getz | 5 | .600 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .600 | 1.200 | .600 |
| Alex Gordon | 6 | .333 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | .556 | 1.056 | .500 |
| Eric Hosmer | 3 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| Mitch Maier | 2 | .500 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .500 | 1.000 | .500 |
| Mike Moustakas | 4 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| Brayan Pena | 3 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
VS.
| HITTERS | AB | AVG | H | HR | RBI | BB | SO | OBP | OPS | SLG |
| Gordon Beckham | 3 | .333 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .333 | .666 | .333 |
| Alejandro De Aza | 3 | .333 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .333 | .666 | .333 |
| Adam Dunn | 2 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | .333 | .333 | .000 |
| Paul Konerko | 5 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | .375 | .375 | .000 |
| Brent Morel | 3 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| A.J. Pierzynski | 10 | .300 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 3 | .300 | 1.000 | .700 |
| Alexei Ramirez | 9 | .222 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .222 | .444 | .222 |
| Alex Rios | 6 | .333 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .429 | .762 | .333 |
| Dayan Viciedo | 2 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
 Kansas City Royals |
|||
| Date | Player | Status | Injury |
| July 28, 2012 | Mike Moustakas | Day-to-Day | Left game - sprained right knee |
| July 05, 2012 | Luke Hochevar | Day-to-Day | Sprained right ankle |
| June 18, 2012 | Chris Getz | 15-Day DL | Lateral strain in lower left leg |
| June 18, 2012 | Chris Getz | 15-Day DL | Lateral strain in lower left leg |
| June 07, 2012 | Felipe Paulino | 60-Day DL | Strained right groin |
| May 26, 2012 | Jarrod Dyson | Day-to-Day | Left game - Right hamstring injury |
 Chicago White Sox |
|||
| Date | Player | Status | Injury |
| August 05, 2012 | Francisco Liriano | Day-to-Day | Bruised left quadriceps |
| July 25, 2012 | Kevin Youkilis | Day-to-Day | Left game - sprained left ankle |
| July 24, 2012 | A.J. Pierzynski | Day-to-Day | Strained right oblique |
| July 08, 2012 | Gavin Floyd | 15-Day DL | Right elbow tendinitis |
| July 08, 2012 | Gavin Floyd | 15-Day DL | Right elbow tendinitis |
| June 29, 2012 | Kevin Youkilis | Day-to-Day | Left game - upset stomach |
CHICAGO (AP) -- Chris Sale had time to catch his breath. Now, maybe, he's locked in.
Sale pitched eight solid innings, Paul Konerko and Gordon Beckham homered late, and the Chicago White Sox beat the Kansas City Royals 4-2 on Monday night.
"I went through a little dead arm period, but it's par for the course," Sale said. "It's all behind us now. We've got a couple months left and we're going to have to make a push and it's not going to be easy."
The margin for error is slim, with a 1 1/2-game lead over Detroit for the AL Central lead. The Tigers are playing well, but so are the White Sox. And they pulled this one out thanks to a strong start by their pitcher and some big hits toward the end.
Konerko tied it leading off the seventh and Beckham gave the White Sox a 3-2 lead with a solo shot in the eighth off Luis Mendoza . Kevin Youkilis added an RBI double in the inning, and the White Sox won for the 10th time in 13 games.
A.J. Pierzynski added two hits, and although he didn't go deep after tying a club record with homers in five straight games, he did drive in the first run with a double in the second.
Sale (13-3), meanwhile, looked sharp on nine days' rest, allowing two runs and eight hits while striking out seven without a walk. He gave up solo homers to Jeff Francoeur and Billy Butler , but otherwise kept the Royals off-balance, with his fastball consistently in the mid-90s mph.
Sale was passed over during the last time through the rotation. The White Sox wanted to give him more rest in his first year as a starter.
"It gives you a little bit more time to recover and catch your breath, I guess you could say, but you've still got a couple of months left," Sale said. "You've just got to keep going with it."
The Royals were impressed.
"If he stays healthy he has a chance to win a bunch of ballgames in his career," Francoeur said.
Addison Reed worked the ninth for his 20th save in 23 chances, retiring Eric Hosmer on a double-play grounder with runners on first and second to end the game.
Mendoza (5-8) gave up seven hits and four runs in 7 1-3 innings.
Butler made it 2-1 in the seventh with his 21st homer. Konerko tied it in the bottom half with a line drive to left that just cleared the wall and landed in the bullpen.
The Royals had runners on first and third in the eighth, but Sale got out of it. Shortstop Alexei Ramirez made a diving stop on Alex Gordon 's soft liner. Sale tagged out Tony Abreu trying to score on Alcides Escobar 's safety squeeze and struck out Lorenzo Cain on three pitches, pumping his left fist on the way to the dugout.
"We know what's on the line and where we want to go," said Beckham, who hadn't homered since June 20. "If we're going to get there, everybody's got to step up and pitch in."
NOTES: White Sox LHP John Danks had surgery on his left shoulder on Monday, and the team expects him to be ready for the start of spring training. Danks' arm is expected to be in a sling for a month. Doctors at Chicago's Rush University Medical Center repaired a capsule tear and removed debris in the rotator cuff and biceps. ... Chicago manager Robin Ventura said LHP Francisco Liriano sustained no real lingering effects after being struck in the right quadriceps by Maicer Izturis ' one-hopper in the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday. Liriano left after five innings. ... Royals manager Ned Yost would not comment on a pregame meeting in the clubhouse. "It's a meeting between us," he said. "If I wanted you guys to be part of the meeting, I would have invited you." ... The Royals held 3B Mike Moustakas out of the lineup for the second straight game because of a lingering bone bruise on his right knee. He first hurt his knee on a fielding play in the first inning July 28 at Seattle. ... Gordon was back in the Kansas City lineup, leading off and playing left field, after sitting out his first game of the season on Sunday. ... Jake Peavy starts Tuesday for Chicago, with Bruce Chen pitching for the Royals.
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Kansas City Royals