KANSAS CITY Lucas Giolito Jersey , Mo. (AP) — Mike Montgomery continues to dominate the club that drafted him out of high school.Montgomery allowed five hits over six-plus innings, David Bote drove in a career-high three runs and the Chicago Cubs beat the Kansas City Royals 5-0 Tuesday night.The Cubs upped their NL Central lead to 2 ½ games over second-place Milwaukee, which lost in San Diego.Montgomery (4-4), who the Royals drafted in the first round in 2008, picked up his first win since June 29. Montgomery is 3-0 with a 0.40 ERA in four appearances against the Royals.“I’ve heard the numbers of what I’ve got against them throughout my career,” Montgomery said. “I think it’s a coincidence. Sometimes you just have a team that you do well against. It happens to be them. They’ve had some good teams over the last couple of years. The team that drafts you, you always want to pitch good against them.”Bote’s first career triple with two out in the first scored Ben Zobrist and Jason Heyward. His fifth inning single scored Javier Baez.“It’s kind of just morphed in over the years,” said Bote, who is in his fifth stint with the Cubs this season after six-plus years in the minors. “The nerves are always there. The adrenalin’s there. Being able to use those emotions into a good avenue, being able to think ‘I’m going to attack this baseball’ or ‘I’m ready for this pitch.’ Put a positive spin on it and just executing.”Victor Caratini, who led off the inning with a single, scored on Zobrist’s sacrifice fly. Zobrist left in the bottom of the inning with left hip tightness, but will likely play Wednesday.“That fifth inning just kind of snowballed on me,” losing pitcher Brad Keller said.Ian Happ’s sacrifice fly in the eighth scored Bote with the final run.Keller (4-5) was removed after six innings, allowing four runs on seven hits and three walks.“He kept us in the game,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. “He made pitches and limited the damage when he needed to. I thought he was going to get out of the first inning scoreless http://www.whitesoxfanproshop.com/authentic-paul-konerko-jersey , but he threw a slider that Bote hit off the wall in the right field for two runs.”The Royals had only one runner past second base, when Adalberto Mondesi swiped third in the seventh.“We just couldn’t do anything against Montgomery,” Yost said. “He did a nice job of mixing up his pitches. He was ahead in the count for the most part and did a good job of keeping us off balance.”The Royals have lost six straight and are 14-43 since May 30. They are tied with Baltimore for the worst record, 34-79, in the majors.BRYANT UPDATECubs 3B Kris Bryant took grounders and played catch, but has not picked up a bat since going on the disabled list on July 24 for the second time with left shoulder inflammation. “I’m really bored, not fun at all,” Bryant said. “But you gotta do what you gotta do to get healthy and hopefully it never happens again. It’s frustrating. It’s not fun to go in the trainer’s room every day. I feel like I’m normal but it’s only when I’m swinging the bat.” No timetable has been set on when the 2016 NL MVP player will return. “I’m not going to get ahead of myself,” he said.HEYWARD BATS FOURTHRF Jason Heyward batted cleanup for the first time this season for the Cubs.ROYALS MAKE TRADEThe Royals acquired RHP Jon Perrin from the Brewers in a minor league trade. Perrin, 25, went to Olathe East, a suburban Kansas City high school, and Oklahoma State. He was assigned to their Double-A Northwest Arkansas club. The Royals sent Lexington RHP Sal Biasi to the Brewers.TRAINER’S ROOMCubs: RHP Anthony Bass (right mid-thoracic strain) tossed a flawless inning Tuesday for the Triple-A Iowa Cubs against Las Vegas. Bass threw eight pitches, all strikes, in his second rehab appearance since going on the DL on July 21.Royals: RHP Ian Kennedy (left oblique strain) threw a bullpen session for the first time since going on the DL on July 11. . OF Brian Goodwin (left groin strain) is eligible to come off the disabled list Wednesday, but manager Ned Yost said he would not. “I’m not sure what their timeline is Reynaldo Lopez Jersey ,” Goodwin said. “I just keep getting better every day.”UP NEXTCubs: LHP Jose Quintana, who is 3-9 versus the Royals, will start the series finale.Royals: RHP Heath Fillmyer is looking for his first big league victory. One half of the participants for the 2018 World Series has been determined, as the Boston Red Sox captured the American League pennant Thursday night.We'll know Boston's opponent by Saturday, and possibly as early as Friday, as the Los Angeles Dodgers hold a 3-2 NLCS lead over the Milwaukee Brewers going into Friday's Game 6 at Miller Park.Boston is making its first appearance in the Fall Classic since 2013, when it defeated the St. Louis Cardinals in six games.When the World Series begins Tuesday at Fenway Park, the Red Sox will be facing their third different National League foe in their fourth World Series appearance since 2004.In every World Series, a few breakout stars emerge, and Boston's ALCS victory gave us a glimpse as to which players might fill that role. Meanwhile, we have an idea who could feature in a starring spot for the eventual National League champion. 2018 World Series ScheduleGame 1:Tuesday, October 23 (Time TBD, Fox)Game 2:Wednesday, October 24 (Time TBD, Fox)Game 3:Friday, October 26 (Time TBD Bruce Rondon Jersey , Fox)Game 4:Saturday, October 27 (Time TBD, Fox)Game 5:Sunday, October 28 (Time TBD, Fox)Game 6:Tuesday, October 30 (Time TBD, Fox)Game 7:Wednesday, October 31 (Time TBD, Fox) Players Who Will Decide ChampionshipDavid PriceDavid Price's ALCS Game 5 start was hopefully a turning point in his postseason career.Price, whose playoff struggles have been well documented in recent weeks, tossed six scoreless innings to help the Red Sox down the Houston Astros 4-1 Thursday.Thursday's outing marked the first time Price gave up less than two runs in a postseason start, which is a welcome development for a Boston team counting on its rotation to alleviate the pressure on the bullpen.Elsa/Getty ImagesChris Sale should start Game 1 of the World Series, which would set up Price for a Game 2 outing on the mound, similar to what we saw in the ALDS and ALCS.Now that Price has confidence behind him from earning his first postseason victory as a starter, he could produce a similar performance at Fenway Park against the NL champion.Before Thursday, the idea of using Price out of the bullpen was a good one http://www.whitesoxfanproshop.com/authentic-paul-konerko-jersey , and it still might be if the Red Sox need to close out a tight game on the road.If Boston manager Alex Cora sticks with the same rotation he utilized in the ALCS, Price would be available for an inning or two between Games 2 and 6.Cora showed in the clinching victory over the Astros that he's not afraid to use a starter in a key relief role, as ALCS Game 3 starter Nathan Eovaldi threw 1.1 innings to set up closer Craig Kimbrel.No matter which role he fills late in the series, Price will benefit from another strong start in Game 2 and be the difference-maker no one expected he could be as recently as Thursday afternoon.Yasiel PuigThe Dodgers will clinch the National League pennant in Milwaukee, and after that, they will rely on an unlikely star at the plate to be competitive at Fenway Park in Games 1 and 2 of the World Series.In each of his past six postseason series, Yasiel Puig hasrecorded at least three hits, with the 2017 NLDS and NLCS being his most successful outings.Puig's bat is starting to come alive against the Brewers, as he has four hits in the past three NLCS games, and he will increase that production in the World Series with the Red Sox more concerned with other batters in the Los Angeles order.Kevork Djansezian/Getty ImagesThe Boston pitchers will be forced to pitch to Puig, who normally resides further down the order, because they will have so much focus on limiting the production of Justin Turner, Manny Machado and others.That careful strategy will end up in a few walks that set the stage for the back end of the Los Angeles lineup to drive in runs.With Puig beginning to heat up at the plate again, he will come up with a few hits in clutch situations and record a game-winning hit at some point in the series. 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