Kansas City, MO (Sports Network) - Billy Butler drove in two runs to back Anthony Lerew's solid performance on the mound, as the Kansas City Royals defeated the Chicago White Sox, 3-1, in the opener of a three-game series at Kauffman Stadium.
Lerew (1-1) gave up one run on three hits in six innings to pick up his first win in the majors. Lerew, who was appearing in his 17th career game, fanned four batters and walked one. Joakim Soria recorded his 19th save of the year.
Mike Aviles went 3-for-4 with an RBI for the Royals, who have won two in a row and four of five overall.
Carlos Quentin hit a solo homer for the White Sox, who have dropped two straight following a season-high 11-game winning streak.
Mark Buehrle (6-7), who was riding a three-start winning streak, lasted 6 1/3 frames, giving up three runs on 10 hits to suffer the loss. He also walked a season-high five batters and struck out two. He fell to 20-11 in 45 career games (43 starts) versus Kansas City.