Royals defeat White Sox behind strong start from Jeremy Guthrie

The Kansas City Royals defeated the Chicago White Sox 2-0 on Saturday night behind staring pitcher Jeremy Guthrie's complete game shutout.

The Royals hopped on the scoreboard in the first inning. Dylan Axelrod retired the first two Royals in the first before hitting Billy Butler. Eric Hosmer then reached base with a single before Lorenzo Cain drove both runners in with a two-out triple, giving Kansas City a 2-0 lead.

The two first innig runs would be the last runs that either team scored for the rest of the night, as both pitchers did a good job limiting runs. Axelrod settled down after the first to throw 7.2 innings. The right-hander allowed seven hits and one walk, but the Royals could not drive in more runners after they reached base.

Guthrie had one of his most efficient and impressive starts in a Kansas City uniform. The Stormin Mormon only needed 106 pitches to retire 27 White Sox. Guthrie pounded the strike zone, walking one and striking out three hitters. The Jonathan Sanchez for Guthrie deal remains one of the best in Dayton Moore's career.

Eric Hosmer looked solid at the plate, collecting three hits against Axelrod, while Salvador Perez also had a multi-hit performance.