Alex Rios, Omar Infante get much-needed hits, Royals beat Red Sox 6-3

The two veterans sat next to each other at their lockers inside the cramped visitors’ clubhouse at Fenway Park, hours before a 6-3 Royals victory over the Red Sox, one in which the unfamiliar occurred: Both second baseman Omar Infante and outfielder Alex Rios contributed to Kansas City’s offensive output.

As the Royals ended a two-game losing skid, Infante snapped a string of 31 consecutive at-bats without a hit when he smacked a sixth-inning single off the Green Monster. Rios notched three singles and drove in a run, swinging well just a couple hours after manager Ned Yost conceded that both men could lose playing time if their season-long slumps continue.

“We need to get (Infante) and Rios going a little bit,” Yost said. “They both are having years that they’re not accustomed to.”

Given their sizable lead in the American League Central, the Royals, 74-48, cannot delude themselves into believing each game matters. These last six weeks serve as the staging ground for the team’s attempt to return to the World Series. Kansas City still must determine the configuration of their lineup and the composition of their playoff rotation.

On Saturday, as the Royals won at Fenway Park for the first time since 2013, Yordano Ventura, 8-7, 4.64 ERA, fortified his case for a spot in October with his third encouraging outing in a row. He allowed one run across six innings. He bullied the Red Sox with his fastball and tricked them with his curveball. Ventura struck out six and scattered six hits.

Yost indicated Ventura looks like “he’s starting to get his swagger back.” Catcher Salvador Perez, who blasted his 18th homer of the season to aid his team’s cause, added, “he’s a completely different guy now.”

“The last three outings have given him a ton of confidence to be the type of pitcher that he knows that he is,” said Jeremy Guthrie, who translated for Ventura. Added Guthrie, “He was pitching inside, like he did last year, and he has that same confidence that he pitched with most of last season.”

Yost hoped to galvanize his team after a pair of listless nights at Fenway Park. On Friday, he said he intended to rest Rios and Lorenzo Cain for Saturday. He decided against it after the Red Sox plastered Johnny Cueto and handed the Royals their second loss in a row.

“I just changed it, after the way we played last night,” Yost said Saturday. “We’ve got to get on the winning side here. We don’t want to come in here and get behind the 8-ball.”

The Royals struck early. Kendrys Morales plated Cain and Eric Hosmer with a first-inning double. He lined a fastball from rookie Matt Barnes off the Green Monster. Perez punted Barnes from the game with a three-run shot in the sixth. The Royals have now hit 96 homers this season; they hit just 95 in 2014.

Later in the sixth, Rios notched his second hit, and Infante followed up with his single. Kansas City can only hope for more of the same in the coming weeks, as they attempt to figure out where to play utility man Ben Zobrist when Alex Gordon returns from the disabled list next month.

The clock will begin to tick when Gordon begins his rehabilitation assignment on Sunday with Class AAA Omaha. Gordon will play at least a week of games for the Storm Chasers. When Gordon makes it back to the Royals, Zobrist can play either second base or right field. Plus, the Royals could decide a platoon of outfielders Jarrod Dyson and Paulo Orlando represents an upgrade over Rios.

Infante classifies as the worst every-day hitter in the majors. He entered Saturday with a .525 on-base plus slugging percentage, which ranked last among the 156 hitters qualified for the batting title. Rios does not rate much better. With a .576 OPS, he resided in 252nd place among the 262 hitters with at least 250 plate appearances.

When Kansas City targeted Infante after the 2013 season, they identified him as the solution to the organization’s long-standing hole at second base. He will cost them $30.25 million over the four years of his contract, though it is difficult to envision Infante still being this team’s starting second baseman in 2017.

Yost sat Infante for two games last week to give him some rest. Infante also missed time this week due to tightness in his back. For months Yost has referenced Infante’s defense as the reason for his sustained spot in the lineup. But he admitted that with Zobrist on the roster, Infante needs to produce something of value at the plate.

“He’s had a little break,” Yost said. “We’ll see how he rebounds from that. You know, we’re going to have to make a decision when Gordie comes back. So we have some built-in time to let him get going.”

Rios occupies a similar position. The Royals inked him to a one-year, $11 million this winter. The team ignored his four-homer output for Texas in 2014 and expressed their hope he could still provide more power than Nori Aoki, the man he replaced.

Rios clobbered opposing pitchers in spring training and hit .321 in the season’s first week. The arc of his season changed when Minnesota reliever J.R. Graham broke his left hand with a fastball on April 13. Rios did not return until May 31, and never reclaimed his timing.

Asked about his hitting on Saturday afternoon, Rios insisted his hand no longer bothers him. Yet he admitted he cannot find a rhythm inside the batter’s box.

“I’m working on stuff,” Rios said. “I’ve been working on stuff for quite a bit now. It’s been a difficult time trying to get a feeling of being comfortable at the plate.” He added, “I haven’t been able to find a stance where I can just work from there on. I’m searching for something that hasn’t come quite yet.

Both Infante and Rios flashed life on Saturday evening. The timing could not be better. Yost has stood by each player through a summer-long somnolence at the plate. But he does not intend to do the same in October.

“You just get to a point, and you have to make a decision,” Yost said. “You have to weigh all your options, and look at it.”

Royals 6, Red Sox 3

This story was originally published August 22, 2015 at 9:39 PM with the headline "Alex Rios, Omar Infante get much-needed hits, Royals beat Red Sox 6-3."