Royals Smack White Sox

Carlos Beltran made his return for Kansas City just in time to help the Royals complete a three-game sweep.

Beltran, who missed the first two games of the series, hit a three-run double in his first at-bat Sunday, keying a five-run eighth inning that carried Kansas City to a 12-8 win over the Chicago White Sox.

Beltran sprained his left wrist while diving to make a catch in Wednesday's game against Oakland and didn't return until entering Sunday's game as a defensive replacement in the top of the eighth inning.

"From the left side I don't have a problem," the switch-hitting Beltran said. "From the right side, it's still hard to face a left-hander. It still feels sore, but I can still swing the bat."

"I was trying not to think too much, just put the ball in play and do my job," Beltran said. "I need to come back and play. Those three days on the bench didn't feel too good."

Royals manager Tony Muser was glad to see Beltran come back and experience success after the 1999 AL Rookie of the Year struggled in the early part of the season.

"It was a matter of good timing he came up in the right spot," Muser said. "He got a big hit that really turned the game around."

Jermaine Dye hit his 13th home run as the Royals completed an 8-3 homestand.

"It was pretty good weekend," Muser said of the sweep that pushed his team over .500 at 16-15. "It feels good to get a win and sweep the series, but I still respect that team over there a lot."

Johnny Damon's single marked the 10th straight game in which he's led off with a hit for Kansas City. It's the longest such streak since 1975 the Elias Sports Bureau was unable to research the obscure stat before then.

"I'm sure somebody has done it in the past, probably by Ty Cobb or somebody," Damon said. "But knowing that I've done something for the first time in a long time is really neat."

Carlos Lee and Greg Norton hit RBI singles off Royals reliever Ricky Bottalico (4-1) in the top of the eighth to tie it at 7.

"I like the way our club fought back today. We kept making pushes at them and they kept making big plays," said Chicago manager Jerry Manuel.

Kelly Wunsch (0-2) took the loss.

The White Sox, playing under Manuel for the first time since he served an eight-game suspension, dropped to 1-6 in May after posting a team-record 17 wins in April.

"It's definitely frustrating," Manuel said of his suspension. "You find your little refuge in the dugout then all of a sudden that's taken away from you."

Magglio Ordonez homered, doubled and singled in his first game back from a five-game suspension. Ordonez and Manuel were penalized for a brawl-filled game between the White Sox and Detroit last month.

Dave McCarty walked with the bases loaded to drive in the go-ahead run and Jorge Fabregas' single was Kansas City's only hit in a three-run fifth inning that gave the Royals a 7-4 lead.

The Royals took a 4-3 lead in the fourth on Sanchez's two-out, RBI single. Chicago tied it in the fifth on Jose Valentin's RBI double.

Ordonez hit a solo home run in his first at-bat back from his suspension. Ray Durham also homered for the White Sox.

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