White Sox 6, Royals 5
CHICAGO -- Adam Dunn hit a home run and his teammates added three more as the Chicago White Sox edged the Kansas City Royals 6-5 on Saturday night.
All 11 runs on the night were scored via the long ball as the teams combined to hit seven home runs.
The White Sox went back-to-back in the second inning to jump out to an early lead. After retiring the first two batters, Yordano Ventura threw one fastball too many to Marcus Semien, who deposited Ventura's third offering into the left-field bleachers. Jordan Danks followed with a solo shot of his own when he pounced on a fastball up in the strike zone, putting the White Sox up 2-0.
Semien went 3-for-4 and finished the night a triple short of the cycle.
Dunn padded the lead with another long ball in the third, his 34th of the season. The two-run shot put Chicago up 4-0.
Ventura (0-1), the flame-throwing rookie, lasted just four innings. He gave up six hits -- three of which left the yard -- and four runs.
White Sox starter Erik Johnson was cruising along until Mike Moustakas broke up his no-hit bid with one down in the fifth, driving a solo home run into the right-field bleachers.
Things quickly unraveled for Johnson from there, as Billy Butler brought the Royals right back in the sixth. After Eric Hosmer singled with one out, Butler pulled Johnson's first offering into the bleachers to bring Kansas City within one, 4-3.
Johnson's (3-2) night ended two batters later, after he allowed a single to Salvador Perez and walked Moustakas. Charlie Leesman and Daniel Webb each struck out a man out and kept the Royals from putting more runs on the board in the inning.
Johnson tossed 5 1/3 innings, gave up three runs on five hits, while striking out four and walking three.
Connor Gillaspie gave the Sox some breathing room when he homered with a man on in the bottom half of the seventh to extend the lead to 6-3.
However, the Royals quickly answered in the eighth when Butler singled and Perez sent Matt Lindstrom's 2-0 fastball into the bleachers in left-center field to bring the deficit back down to a single run.
Addison Reed, Chicago's seventh pitcher of the game, managed to keep the Royals' offense quiet in the ninth, picking up his 40th save in 48 chances.
NOTES: The White Sox relieved hitting coach Jeff Manto of his duties after Saturday's game. Assistant hitting coach Harold Baines will handle Manto's duties in Sunday's season finale against the Royals. Manto was ending his second season as the club's hitting coach after being appointed on October 31, 2011. ... The Royals' bullpen is close to setting a team record for ERA. Entering Saturday, the bullpen had a 2.55 ERA, which would easily top their previous mark of 2.80 in the strike-shortened season of 1981. ... The White Sox guaranteed that they wouldn't lose 100 games. Prior to the game, manager Robin Ventura was asked about trying to avoid 100 losses. "Nobody wants that -- a hundred losses. It doesn't feel good," Ventura said. "But it's not going to make me feel any better to have 99." ... Reed joined Bobby Jenks, Keith Foulke and current bullpen coach Bobby Thigpen as the only pitchers to reach 40 saves in a season for the South Siders. ... The White Sox and Royals wrap up the season with Jose Quintana (9-6, 3.45) taking on Bruce Chen (8-4, 3.31) at U.S. Cellular Field on Sunday at 1:10 p.m. CT.
