Billy Butler starts at first base as Royals face White Sox ace Chris Sale

Billy Butler is one of the toughest hitters Chris Sale has ever dealt with. In 44 plate appearances, Butler has notched 14 hits and four walks against Sale, with two doubles and three home runs. He has a 1.050 OPS against him.

So Butler will start for the Royals on Wednesday night against the White Sox. And he will start at first base. Josh Willingham returns to action after missing time with a strained groin muscle. He will be the designated hitter. Eric Hosmer will spend the evening on the bench.

LHP Chris Sale (12-3, 1.99 ERA) faces RHP Yordano Ventura (12-10, 3.27 ERA):

WHITE SOX (69-82

1. Adam Eaton, CF.

2. Alexei Ramirez, SS.

3. Jose Abreu, 1B.

4. Conor Gillaspie, 3B.

5. Avisail Garcia, RF.

6. Dayan Viciedo, DH.

7. Jordan Danks, LF.

8. Tyler Flowers, C.

9. Marcus Semien, 2B.

ROYALS (82-68)

1. Alcides Escobar, SS.

2. Nori Aoki, RF.

3. Lorenzo Cain, CF.

4. Josh Willingham, DH.

5. Alex Gordon, LF.

6. Salvador Perez, C.

7. Billy Butler, 1B.

8. Omar Infante, 2B.

9. Jayson Nix, 3B.

This story was originally published September 17, 2014 at 3:36 PM.