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The Twins, who stayed one game behind Chicago in the division, notched consecutive wins for the first time in nearly three weeks. They had three hits and two RBIs from Jason Kubel and three singles by catalyst Alexi Casilla.
Four of Minnesota’s five RBIs came with two outs, and the Twins (80-65) surpassed last year’s victory total behind another strong start from Slowey (12-9).
The Royals fell to 3-11 this season against Minnesota and have lost 13 of their last 15 road games.
Kyle Davies (6-7) gave up four runs and eight hits over 52/3 innings for Kansas City, while Delmon Young, Nick Punto and Carlos Gomez also drove in runs for the Twins.
Reliever Leo Nunez let the game get out of hand in the seventh, when Gomez singled, Denard Span walked, and Casilla bunted to the right of the mound. Nunez threw the ball short of first base, and it skipped all the way to the bullpen while two runs scored.
Royals manager Trey Hillman reorganized his lineup as a response to what he deemed a lethargic effort in Tuesday’s 7-2 defeat to Minnesota, after he vowed his team would not roll over for the Twins or White Sox — who account for seven of their final 18 matchups.
Mike Aviles moved up to the leadoff spot, Alberto Callaspo hit second, David DeJesus dropped to third and Jose Guillen was batting cleanup. John Buck, Esteban German and Jason Smith were in. Miguel Olivo, Ryan Shealy and Billy Butler were out.
The results, though, were largely the same on the night Kansas City was officially eliminated from the division race.
After consecutive singles to start the game was followed by a sacrifice fly from DeJesus, Guillen ended the inning with a double-play groundout. The relay throw from Casilla was wide of first base, but Justin Morneau had plenty of time to make the catch and tag Guillen.
Slowey surrendered his share of hard-hit balls, but that’s his style — getting them to go to the right places. He retired 17 of his last 19 batters, surrendering only a walk and a double during that stretch.
Matching Glen Perkins for the team lead in victories, Slowey improved to 5-1 in his last seven starts while allowing only five baserunners. He struck out two and maintained his healthy major league lead in the fewest walks category, with 19.
Notes: Carlos Gomez stole his 30th base, Minnesota’s first player to reach that mark since Luis Rivas in 2001 and the 14th time a Twin has collected that many in 48 seasons. ... Callaspo hit a line drive into the home dugout in the third inning that nearly decapitated Twins closer Joe Nathan. He stood up, hopped around and sat back down with wide eyes, a weary smile and several deep breaths. ... Minnesota RF Michael Cuddyer (broken foot) has been cleared to run as much as he can handle, but he’s not close to full speed yet. ... Hillman said he’d like to find some opportunities for recent callup 1B Kila Ka’aihue, but he’d rather it not be at the expense of playing time for Ryan Shealy. Ka’aihue was a pinch-hitter for Smith in the eighth. ... The Royals could activate 3B Alex Gordon (tear in hip flexor muscle) and OF Mitch Maier (broken bones in face) this weekend at Cleveland. Both have been out for three weeks. Hillman said Gordon will play in one of Saturday’s games against the Indians, likely the first half of the doubleheader. ... The Twins announced their bid to host the 2014 All-Star game at their new ballpark, which will open in 2010.
