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Tuesday, Aug. 29 8:05pm ET
Twins manager impressed by Sweeney | |||||
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Mike Sweeney made quite an impression on Minnesota manager Tom Kelly. Sweeney hit a two-run double and Blake Stein allowed five hits in 6 2/3 innings as the Kansas City Royals used two big innings to beat the Twins 7-3 Tuesday night. "It's nice to see a player like that come into the league, a player who can recognize the situation and come through," Kelly said. "He's a special player. "It looks like he's going to become one of the dominant players in the game." Sweeney appreciated Kelly's comments. "That's an honor to receive that from Tom Kelly, a man who has been around the game for so long and is so knowledgeable about the game," he said. "But I don't let the positive comments from guys like that affect me. They are honors, but I could go out tomorrow and have the worst game of my life if I get caught up in stats and comments. I just have to keep an even keel and continue working hard." Sweeney had a two-run double in a four-run third inning off J.C. Romero (2-4), and Jermaine Dye added a two-run double in three-run fifth. Sweeney's hit extended his hitting streak to 15 games and tied him with George Brett for the fourth most RBI in a season for Kansas City with 118. "Sweeney has been doing that all year for us," Royals manager Tony Muser said. The game was played in front of 11,931 fans, a season-low for the Royals. Stein (5-3) cruised through the first six innings, giving up only three hits and never facing more than four batters in an inning. But he gave up solo home runs to Matt Lawton and Corey Koskie in the seventh before being relieved by Kris Wilson. "I was pleased all the way up to the seventh inning," Stein said. "I got some pitches up and they hit them out. I don't think it was fatigue. I was really concentrating on trying to work with the lead and not walking guys. Then I gave up a couple of home runs and walked a guy." Stein's effort was another in a string of solid performances for the Royals pitching staff. Over the past 16 decisions, Kansas City's starters are 12-4. "Your confidence in your starters keeps growing. You can go on to other things to worry about," Muser said. "They've done a real good job. They've been very competitive and have kept a lot of pressure off that bullpen." The Twins took the lead in the second inning when Koskie singled with two outs, stole second and scored on Torii Hunter's RBI single. Kansas City took the lead with four runs in the third. Hector Ortiz led off with a walk and Wilson Delgado followed with a single. Rey Sanchez was hit by a pitch, loading the bases. Sweeney then doubled to right field. Ortiz and Delgado scored on the hit and Sanchez came across when Lawton's throw from right field got away from second baseman Jay Canizaro for an error. The Royals extended the lead in the fifth. Sanchez led off with a single and Sweeney followed with a walk. The Twins brought in reliever Jack Cressend, who gave up a two-run double to Dye, giving him 101 RBI. After Quinn struck out, Joe Randa singled in Dye to give the Royals a 7-1 lead. Game notesRoyals 2B Jeff Reboulet was scratched with a bad back. He was replaced by Wilson Delgado. ... Royals CF Carlos Beltran, who has been on the DL since July 5 with a bruised bone above his right knee, was in Kansas City on Tuesday for an MRI. He was scheduled to report to Triple-A Omaha Wednesday. ... Kyle Snyder, the Royals' No. 1 pick in the 1999 draft, has been sidelined for the season with torn ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching elbow. He is scheduled for "Tommy John surgery" Sept. 7 and is expected to be out for approximately a year. ... The Twins have hit 101 home runs in 132 games. They did not hit their 100th home run in 1999 until the 152nd game. The Royals have allowed 202 home runs, most in the majors, and tying the club record set last season. ... Randa's RBI in the fifth gave him 85 for the season, one more than his previous career high set last year. | ALSO SEE Baseball Scoreboard Minnesota Clubhouse Kansas City Clubhouse RECAPS Boston 8 Tampa Bay 0
Kansas City 7
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