Morning Box Score

By Matt Motyka in News on Jun 1, 2009 3:00PM

Sox Sweep Royals
The White Sox earned an impressive 7-4 victory over Zack Greinke and the Royals Sunday afternoon, completing the series sweep and improving to 3-4 against Kansas City this season. The Sox got to Greinke early when Scott Podsednik hit a leadoff triple in the top of the first and Jim Thome singled him home three batters later. The Royals responded by taking a 4-1 lead over the next two innings, but Chicago added a pair of runs off Greinke in the fourth and another in the fifth to tie the score at four apiece. The game then entered a stalemate until the top of the ninth, when Chris Getz hammered home two runs on a line drive single and Podsednik brought home Getz with a base knock of his own, giving Chicago their 7-4 lead. Matt Thorton picked up the win in relief of John Danks, after the starter pitched 5.1 innings and allowed all four of the Royals runs. It was a no-decision for Greinke, who allowed three earned over seven frames, making it his "worst start" of the season. The Sox hope to bring the momentum home when they square off against the Oakland A's at 7:11.

Cubs Split With L.A.
The Cubs were quickly dispatched by the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday, surrendering five runs in the first inning of an 8-2 loss. L.A. began the game with five straight hits off Cubs starter Sean Marshall, who threw 33 pitches in the opening frame. The Dodgers would tack on three more before the Cubs got on the board, minimizing the impact of Reed Johnson's two-run double in the sixth. Marshall pitched into the fifth and was accountable for all eight L.A. runs (seven earned), as he dropped to 3-4 on the year. Johnson led the Cubs' offense for the second day in a row, collecting three hits in four plate appearances. With the four-game split, Chicago finishes the month of May at a game over .500 and 4.5 back of the division-leading Milwaukee Brewers. The Cubs will look to earn a win for Randy Wells tomorrow evening when they step in against Atlanta at 6 p.m. after an off day to travel today.

FC Dallas Extinguish Fire
The Fire's 11-game unbeaten streak came to an end at the hands of an unexpected spoiler on Sunday, as Chicago lost to FC Dallas 3-0. Dallas, who entered the match at 1-3-6, took an early lead off the head of Jeff Cunningham 15 minutes in. Dallas then got a second header goal at the 35 minute mark, but this time it was off Fire defender C.J. Brown, who accidentally bounced the ball into his own net. Chicago hurt their chances further in the second half, when Bakary Soumare committed his second bookable offense. Not only did the Fire have to play a man short for the final 11 minutes, but Kenny Cooper converted the resulting free kick into a third Dallas goal. The loss left Chicago a game short of tying L.A. and Kansas City for the best undefeated start to an MLS season. The Fire will stay home to host the Houston Dynamo this Friday.