Swing and a miss for Sox

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Before Saturday's game against the Royals, manager Ozzie Guillen was channeling Don King as he pumped up the White Sox as hungry heavyweights.

"I expect to win," Guillen said. "I think right now we're in a great, I won't say great, but a good position. I expect them to go out there and perform the right way. I'm seeing some killer instinct now. I don't know why I have that feeling, but I see it coming."

Guillen proceeded to watch it go in a 5-2 loss to Kansas City at Kauffman Stadium.

Well aware the second-place Twins lost earlier in the day, the Sox were positioned to increase their 2-game lead in the AL Central.

Royals starter Kyle Davies had other ideas, as the right-hander had a 3-hit shutout going until Alexei Ramirez hit a 2-run homer in the eighth inning.

"We were ready to fight," Guillen said. "We just left the gloves in the hotel. But that guy (Davies) threw the ball real well and we couldn't get anything going until late.

"I'm going to give credit to (Davies). He threw the ball very, very well."

White Sox starter Gavin Floyd did not, and he took the loss after allowing 5 runs on 8 hits over 6 innings.

Floyd was burned by Alex Gordon's 2-run homer in the second inning, David DeJesus' inside-the-park HR leading off the third and a solo home run by Kila Ka'aihue in the seventh inning.

Hitting home runs is usually the White Sox' game, and Ramirez finally got to Davies in the eighth.

"We couldn't get anything going until late," Guillen said. "By the time we got it going, it was too late."

Actually, it looked like Jermaine Dye's timing was just right.

Trailing 5-2 in the ninth inning, Dewayne Wise coaxed a leadoff walk against Joakim Sora, the Royals' all-star closer.

After A.J. Pierzynski singled with one out, Dye connected on a 1-1 slider and it looked like he had his first home run in September. But instead of tying the game with a 3-run shot, left fielder Mark Teahen caught the drive just in front of the fence.

"I thought I got it good enough to go out, but this is a pretty big park now," Dye said. "It just came up a few feet short."

The Sox can only hope they don't come up short in their bid to make the playoffs.

"I think it's just another missed opportunity," Dye said. "Of course we're paying attention (to the Twins). We know the situation. It was a missed opportunity, but that's why we play it out to the end."