05/01/2007 1:39 AM ET Lackey impressive as Halos roll KC Starter strikes out seven; Guerrero, Figgins drive in runs By Lyle Spencer / MLB.com KANSAS CITY -- Chone Figgins was back, driving in one run and starting a double play with a superb stab at third base, and Vladimir Guerrero and the Angels looked close to whole in putting away the Royals, 3-1, on Monday night at Kauffman Stadium. The evening began with a Guerrero double worth two runs -- he reached and drove a changeup off the center-field fence 410 feet away -- and it ended with Francisco Rodriguez striking out the side after a leadoff double. In between, John Lackey moved to 4-2 with 6 1/3 ace-like innings featuring seven strikeouts and one line drive off his left foot, kicking over to Robb Quinlan at first for a painful out. Lackey later said he didn't anticipate anything beyond some postgame discomfort, the brand his right fielder routinely dishes out with a bat that has been booming in vintage form. The victim this time was veteran southpaw Odalis Perez. "Vlad, he's amazing," K-Rod said, the save, riding in behind Justin Speier and Scot Shields, his ninth. "Throw him a strike, and he'll crush it. Throw him a ball, and he'll crush that too. What can you do? He's so strong, and he's got those long arms, and he looks like he's about 6-6 up there. "To me, I'd throw one down the middle and say, `Do whatever you like.'" Guerrero, who doubled again to left center in his third at-bat but was thrown out at third being overly ambitious, is hitting .366 with a .695 slugging percentage and .470 on-base percentage. He is off to one of his best starts despite missing a few days with a deep bruise on his right hand courtesy of a 96 mph Josh Beckett fastball on a cold Boston day during a road trip that is receding in meaning as the wins pile up, nine in 11 games. "[Perez] was trying to crowd him inside and then go soft," manager Mike Scioscia said of the double that followed singles by Reggie Willits and Orlando Cabrera for a 2-0 lead. "He got Vlad out front a little bit -- but obviously not enough. "To square it up and hit it over [David] DeJesus' head ... believe me, that's a sign of strength. He's got some range with his bat." Perez was impressed, but hardly surprised. "You can throw Vladdy any pitch you want, and if he hits it, he's gonna hit it awfully hard," Perez said. "It was a good pitch, down and away. He has no strike zone. You've gotta give Vladdy all the credit. He's one of the best hitters in the game." Cabrera, Erick Aybar and Quinlan also delivered two-hit nights. A superb play behind third by rookie Alex Gordon, ending the first, deprived Quinlan of extra bases and probably two RBIs with the ultraswift Aybar off and running from first. "He was playing the line, and he made a really good play," Quinlan said. "That would've been nice to have; I was feeling better tonight, letting the ball come to me, not jumping at it. "I think this is a big road trip for us, coming off that first one, how poorly we played [losing seven of eight]. We've won three in a row now, and we're getting good pitching, making plays in the field and scoring some runs." Perez needed all his guile to hold the Angels to three runs across six innings, yielding 10 hits and a walk. "I like the way we're getting after it on the field, the type of game we're playing," Scioscia said. In a productive debut after missing the season's first 25 games with two fractured fingers, Figgins contributed with the bat and the glove. "He's a guy who makes things happen for us," Lackey said. "I'm glad to have him back -- and he was pretty excited to be back." The Royals cut their two-run first-inning deficit in half in the second on doubles by Ross Goad and Ryan Shealy. A strong throw by Gary Matthews in center cut down Shealy at the plate on Tony Pena's single, Shealy departing with left hamstring tightness. The Angels pushed their lead to 3-1 in the fourth when Figgins doubled home Aybar after both Aybar and Quinlan singled and then executed a double steal. Figgins and Aybar turned a brilliant double play to help Lackey escape the sixth inning despite yielding two singles and a walk. Figgins short-hopped Esteban German's grounder and fed Aybar, and the natural shortstop turned a double play that would have made Roberto Alomar proud with a lightning turn. "It was huge for me," Lackey said. "They had some big guys coming up. It was good to get those two outs." Speier got the last two outs in the seventh, Shields got through the eighth with Aybar starting another double play, and K-Rod was K-Rod at the end. --

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