Surprise, Ariz. ? John Buck, acquired by the Kansas City Royals in the Carlos Beltran three-team trade last year, struggled with his hitting when he first arrived in the majors.

But his slugging numbers improved near the end of the season, and the Royals are looking for their catcher to continue to hit well.

When Buck arrived June 24 in Kansas City, the Royals were playing the St. Louis Cardinals before a sold-out Kauffman Stadium crowd. General manager Allard Baird talked to Buck about his hitting.

“Before I went out and stretched, I talked to Allard,” Buck said. “He said, ‘We plan on you struggling with your hitting for the first two months. If you don’t, I’ll be happy. Surprise me. We want you to concentrate on catching the staff, making it a priority.’ It didn’t surprise me when he said that.”

Buck, who was hitting .300 with 12 home runs with Triple-A New Orleans when the trade was made, struggled early in the majors. Buck hit .149 with one double, one home run and drove in one run in his first 24 games.

Buck said Baird’s comments “helped me” not to panic.

“He told me that, ‘I know you can hit and hit with power,’ but he wanted me to handle the pitching staff the way it should be handled,” Buck said.

Buck’s hitting came around at the end of last season. He hit .277 with eight doubles, 11 home runs and 29 RBIs in his final 47 games. His 12 home runs and .463 slugging percentage after the All-Star break topped Kansas City.

Royals catcher John Buck checks with coaches during an intrasquad game. Buck worked out Tuesday in Surprise, Ariz.

Art Stewart, the Royals’ senior adviser to the general manager, said he believed Buck would hit at least 20 home runs this season.

“I do think I can be an effective hitter in the big leagues,” Buck said. “I’m realistic. I’m still learning. Catchers normally don’t start off raking. It takes a year or two, as there are so many things to worry about.

“I went through failure last year at the plate. I do feel more confident going into this season hitting-wise than I did the first month or two last year. You’re always making adjustments.”

Notes: Mike Sweeney, who was limited to 106 games last season because of a back injury, hit a two-run homer in the first inning of the Royals’ intrasquad game Tuesday. “Sweeney on his first swing of the year hit the ball out,” manager Tony Pena said. “He’s on a mission.” Kansas City used 13 pitchers in the 21/2-hour game in which the Blues defeated the Blacks 7-5. But sometimes Pena ended innings after pitchers threw 18 pitches, even if there weren’t three outs.