CHICAGO (AP) — Salvador Perez and Whit Merrifield hit solo home runs, Daniel Lynch took a shutout into the sixth inning in his return from the injured list and the Kansas City Royals edged the Chicago White Sox 2-1 on Monday night for their second straight win.
Perez launched a monster blast for the second straight game and his third homer in four contests after missing 31 games with a left thumb injury and surgery. The seven-time All Star catcher has eight RBIs in the span.
“This guy just continues to amaze us,” Royals manager Mike Matheny said. “Any injury, especially one that causes a surgery, usually it’s not just the strength, it’s the timing. That’s probably the most amazing thing after he’s able to take off five weeks.
“For him to jump right in … just not many people do that.”
Merrifield’s drive into the left-field bullpen off Michael Kopech (4-7) in the sixth might have been his last with Kansas City. A two-time All Star in seven seasons with the Royals, the second baseman has been the subject of trade rumors heading into Tuesday’s deadline.
It didn’t distract Merrifield on Monday.
“Once the game starts, the game and what happens off the field are two separate parts of my life,” Merrifield said. “I feel like I do a pretty good job of disconnecting.”
Tim Anderson and Andrew Vaughn each had two hits off Lynch, but the White Sox slipped back to .500 (51-51). Pinch-hitter Gavin Sheets drove in a run with sac fly in the seventh.
Chicago, 23-29 at home, failed in a bid to win three consecutive games at Guaranteed Rate Field for the first time this season.
Lynch (4-7) allowed six hits, struck out seven and walked none in 5 1/3 innings as he returned from a rehab assignment at Triple-A Omaha and started in place of Brad Keller. The 6-foot-6 left-hander went on the…