CHICAGO _ Matt Davidson's approach to days off this season is to pretend he's not really off.
That could explain why the White Sox designated hitter stepped to the plate Monday night against Royals left-hander Jason Vargas after sitting out four straight games and immediately rediscovered his hot bat.
Davidson homered to right-center field in the second inning to kick off his three-hit, four-RBI night in a 12-1 victory over the Royals at Guaranteed Rate Field. That included two hits and three RBIs in the Sox's eight-run sixth inning, the most the club has scored in a single inning since nine against the Rangers in July 2012.
Sox right-hander Miguel Gonzalez gave up one unearned run on two hits and one walk over eight innings to help hand the Royals their fifth straight loss.
Davidson hadn't played in a game since April 18 as manager Rick Renteria said he wanted to use other players in the lineup mix. During that time off, Davidson said he tried to take extra groundballs or get in more hitting work to stay sharp.
"It gives me the luxury to get a little more work in, whereas when you play every day you try to conserve your energy," Davidson said. "I'm really trying not to take any mental days off, even if I'm not playing. ... You don't want to take days off, even if you have the day. There's still a lot to learn every day."
Davidson didn't play every day in his first big-league stint with the Diamondbacks in 2013, and he said watching Martin Prado and Eric Chavez work during that time helped him grow.
"Talking to those guys and taking groundballs in batting practice with them, I felt like I gathered a lot of wisdom from them in those moments," Davidson said. "Playing every day is important as far as development, but you can learn a lot just sitting, listening and watching as well."
First baseman Jose Abreu gave the Sox the lead for good in the third with a two-out RBI single to left field. Tim Anderson reached on Mike Moustakas' two-base throwing error and stole third before scoring.
Melky Cabrera extended the lead with a two-run single in the fifth. Davidson drove in the first run of the sixth against Royals reliever Peter Moylan with a double and he drove in the last runs of the inning with a two-run single off Travis Wood. The third hit set a new career high, and he matched his career high with his fourth RBI.
Tyler Saladino's two-run triple and Todd Frazier's two-run double also highlighted the inning.
Gonzalez was coming off one of his best starts in a Sox uniform last week, when he allowed one earned run over 8 1/3 innings against the Yankees. He picked up where he left off Monday by allowing just four baserunners over his eight innings.
Whit Merrifield reached base on third baseman Todd Frazier's fielding error with two out in the third, and he scored on Moustakas' double to right field. That was the Royals' only hit over the first six innings. Gonzalez then retired 12 straight before Alex Gordon's single with two out in the seventh. He retired his final four batters and had five strikeouts.
The Sox geared up for the three-game series with early full-squad defensive work Monday afternoon before staying on the field for batting practice, and the defense helped Gonzalez cruise through his night on 105 pitches. Renteria said the Sox might try such work once or twice a homestand.
