Minneapolis ? Stung by four consecutive one-run losses, the Kansas City Royals ended their frustrations against Minnesota on Monday.

Luis Alicea hit a three-run homer and Carlos Febles went 4-for-5 for the Royals in a 12-4 victory that ended the Twins’ five-game winning streak.

Kansas City's Luis Alicea (12) celebrates with Carlos Febles, second from right, and Aaron Guiel, left, after Alicea's three-run homer. The Royals won Monday at Minneapolis.

“That’s what we needed,” Febles said, “to come out and play a game like this.”

The bottom third of Kansas City’s order Neifi Perez, Brent Mayne and Febles went 10-for-15 with nine runs scored and three RBIs. Leadoff hitter Aaron Guiel was 2-for-5 with two RBIs and Alicea, batting second, drove in four with two hits.

“It feels good to leave this place with a win,” Alicea said. “Minnesota has a great team.”

After losing six in a row, Kansas City had 17 hits and avoided its first four-game sweep at the Metrodome. The Royals, 4-11 against Minnesota this year, have outscored the Twins 73-68. They scored more than four runs for the first time in 13 games.

“That’s just the way this game is,” Kansas City manager Tony Pena said. “I was happy to see the bottom part of the lineup come out like that. It’s a good sign right there.”

Royals rookie Shawn Sedlacek (2-2) won despite allowing four runs, eight hits and five walks in 623 innings. Sedlacek gave up a pair of sacrifice flies, to Denny Hocking in the second and Bobby Kielty in the sixth, then faded in the seventh.

Joe Mays (1-3) yielded eight runs and 12 hits in 523 innings for Minnesota. His fourth start since spending three months on the disabled list with elbow inflammation was by far his worst.

But he said his arm felt strong.

“It’s funny how it works,” Mays said. “I thought I had good stuff. It seems like every ball they put in play seemed to find a hole.”

Though he struck out only one, Mays was fine until the Royals scored twice on four hits in the fifth. Trailing 4-1, Mays got two outs in the sixth but then gave up four straight singles.

Kevin Frederick entered with two on and allowed Alicea’s first homer since last Sept. 8, putting the Royals up 9-1 and ending the Minnesota bullpen’s scoreless innings streak at 20.

Mays threw wildly past first on a bunt single by Perez in the sixth, ending the Twins’ club-record errorless streak at 12 games, but Torii Hunter could’ve been charged with an error in the third when he lost Mayne’s ball in the ceiling and let it bounce for a ground-rule double. The Royals scored twice in that inning.

Hocking played third base for Minnesota in place of Corey Koskie, held out of the lineup after bruising his chest Sunday when Royals first baseman Chan Perry hit him with a ball that was intended for home plate.

Koskie spent the night in a hospital as a precaution, underwent tests Monday morning and was released. He said he could play Tuesday in Baltimore.

The Twins, 19-5 since the All-Star break and 16 games ahead of Chicago in the AL Central, weren’t fretting after the lopsided loss.

“It was just one of those bad games,” catcher A.J. Pierzynski said. “It’s a six-month season. It happens. We had a great homestand. Hopefully, it will continue on the road.”

Notes: The Twins’ clubhouse was subdued in victory after Koskie’s scare on Sunday but back to normal Monday. An enlarged paper replica of a baseball was taped to the chest of Koskie’s jersey in his stall. … Chuck Knoblauch, still sore above his elbow after being hit there by Rick Reed on Friday, was out of the lineup for the second straight day but is expected back for today’s game in New York. Knoblauch, who missed 39 games earlier this year with a strained forearm, took the Royals’ lineup card out to the umpires at the plate before the game. … Ortiz extended his hitting streak to 18 games with a single in the sixth. … Finishing a 10-game homestand at 8-2, the Twins averaged 29,777 fans per game.