ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Apparently, Lorenzo Cain does not play favorites.

The Kansas City center fielder drove in the only two runs that Los Angeles starter Jesse Chavez allowed in seven innings. Then in the top of the eighth against Angels reliever Keynan Middleton, Cain led off with his second homer that helped the Royals extend their winning streak to six with a 3-1 victory.

Cain had a home run and an RBI single against Chavez, continuing the torrid pace he has been on since the start of the month. With three more hits, Cain is batting .368 (21-for-57) with eight homers, 16 RBIs and 18 runs scored in June.

"I'm just swinging at better pitches," Cain said of his recent success. "Laying off the sliders in the dirt, laying off the bad pitches, just being able to do damage with the pitches when I get a chance to hit 'em."

Likely Cain's biggest fan was Royals starter Ian Kennedy, who began the night looking for his first win of the season. Kennedy was 0-6 with five no-decisions in his 11 starts.

Kennedy was perfect through 5 2/3 innings, retiring the first 17 batters he faced until Cliff Pennington crushed a 91 mph fastball on a 3-1 count, hitting the ball into the right-field seats for his first home run of the season.

"I know Cliff pretty well," Kennedy said. "I told him he's a terrible friend. I'm deleting his phone number from my phone."

That not only ended the no-hit and shutout bids but also seemed to crack the door open for the Angels' offense, if only temporarily.

Cameron Maybin followed with a double and Kole Calhoun walked. Kennedy fell behind in the count 3-1 to Albert Pujols but got the final out of the inning on a pop to second.

Kennedy was finished after the sixth and relied on the bullpen -- Mike Minor (seventh inning), Joakim Soria (eighth) and Kelvin Herrera (ninth, 14th save) -- to finish the game and preserve win No. 1.

“It was only matter of time," Kennedy said of getting his first win. "I felt really good my last start and I worked through some of those bad habits I created when I was trying pitch through my injury (strained hamstring in May) and try to do things to just be able to go out there."

Kennedy's best performance of the season before Friday came April 16 when he shut out the Angels on two hits in eight innings, only to come away with a no-decision.

"He had good command tonight, in and out, changed some speeds and we didn't get too many good looks at him," Angels manager Mike Scioscia said of Kennedy. "We had three or four balls hit hard, but he worked the corners, worked the fringes, got underneath some swings. In the sixth, we had some opportunities but just couldn’t get that one hit."

Chavez had one of this best games of the season, giving up two runs while scattering nine hits in seven innings. He has been hit or miss in the majority of his 14 starts this year -- he has allowed five runs or more four times but two runs or fewer seven times, including Friday.

"Jesse's success is really contingent on making pitches," Scioscia said. "What we're hopeful of is as he gets into that third time around the order, that 18th, 19th out where he can finish seven like he did, then he's going to have success.

"He's pitched this deep before in games. Tonight he had good rhythm and good tempo and made pitches. Jesse keeps trying to evolve as a pitcher and I think he did some things tonight that will continue to move him forward."

The Royals took a 1-0 lead on Cain's two-out homer in the third inning, marking the third consecutive game that Cain has homered.

In the fifth, the Royals got a leadoff single from Alex Gordon and a perfectly-placed, hit-and-run single to right field by Whit Merrifield, moving Gordon to third. Merrifield, though, was doubled up at first base after Pennington made a leaping catch of Jorge Bonifiacio's line drive at second.

Chavez, though, couldn't get out of the inning unscathed because Cain followed with a two-out single to right field, scoring Gordon to put Kansas City up 2-0.

NOTES: Angels RHP Cam Bedrosian, the club's closer to start the season but on the disabled list since April 22 with a strained groin, is expected to be activated from the disabled list. Angels manager Mike Scioscia said only that Bedrosian would be used in the "back end" of the bullpen, not committing him to the closer's role right away. RHP Bud Norris has pitched well in the closer's role in Bedrosian's absence, logging 11 saves with a 2.59 ERA and .200 opposing hitters batting average. ... Royals LHP Danny Duffy, out since May 30 with a strained right oblique, threw a light side session and likely will throw again Sunday. If all goes well, he could begin facing live hitters in batting practice on Tuesday. Duffy was 4-4 with a 3.54 ERA in 11 starts before the injury. ... Angels OF Eric Young Jr. was not in the starting lineup for the first time since being called up to replace injured OF Mike Trout on May 29. Scioscia, who said he was giving Young a "breather," started OF Ben Revere in Young's place. ... The Royals have committed 23 errors this season, the fewest in the majors.