Cubs edge Royals 1-0 in 11 innings, hurting KC’s home-field quest

The sound echoed through the night, only to be swallowed up by the roars of Wrigley Field, as Cubs outfielder Chris Denorfia’s game-winning home run disappeared into the bleachers in the 11th inning of a 1-0 Royals loss.

Unwilling to use closer Wade Davis in a tied game on the road, manager Ned Yost subjected rookie Miguel Almonte to an outcome that felt cruel. Denorfia detonated the first pitch he saw. It was a 97-mph fastball at the thighs.

“You get to that point and you don’t score,” Yost said, his voice trailing off. The result could not be surprising. The Royals believe Almonte possesses a bright future and an electric arsenal, but he has suffered through several other scenarios like that in September.

Denorfia rounded the bases as the Royals, 90-66, trudged off the field, effectively two games behind Toronto in the race for home-field advantage in the American League. Toronto topped the Orioles, which gave them 91 victories on the season. Because the Blue Jays own a tiebreaker over Kansas City, the Royals must finish one game better to claim the advantage. At this point, the task looks tall.

Almonte wore the loss, but his teammates offered little resistance to Cubs pitchers. The Royals struck out 14 times and managed only four hits. The group wasted one of the best outings of the season from Yordano Ventura.

Ventura dazzled for seven scoreless innings. He opened with five perfect frames. He exited with two hits allowed and five strikeouts. He authored a compelling argument to headline this team’s rotation next week. The argument may already be settled.

Game one of the American League Division Series falls on Oct. 8, which is Ventura’s turn in the rotation. If Kansas City does not alter its alignment, Ventura would be set up to start that night at Kauffman Stadium, with high-profile, midseason acquisition Johnny Cueto ticketed for game two.

Yost said the effort he saw from Ventura on Monday “could be the best game” he’s thrown in 2015. Ventura did not disagree.

“He had good rhythm,” said catching coach Pedro Grifol, who translated for Ventura. “He felt like he was strong. He threw all his pitches. He commanded all his pitches in the strike zone.”

The game Monday made up for a postponed one from late May. The Royals start a three-game series with the White Sox on the South Side on Tuesday.

On Monday morning, Yost spotted droves of Royals fans flooding the streets of Chicago. A similar blue-clad horde filled the seats at Wrigley in the evening. A “let’s go Royals” chant followed the completion of the national anthem.

The ballpark appeared split. When Cubs rookie Kris Bryant boomed a drive in the bottom of the first, the Cubs partisans screamed. A louder cheer erupted when Lorenzo Cain secured the baseball on the warning track, with his back shrouded in the stadium’s fabled ivy.

That was the last out of the first inning. Ventura would not allow much hard contact for a lengthy stretch.

“He’s felt good all year, for the most part,” Grifol said. “He’s learned a lot. And he’s had some bad breaks this year. The most important thing is that he’s learned from them. He’s feeling pretty good right now.”

His counterpart on the mound was Kyle Hendricks, a lanky, 25-year-old right-hander. In his last outing, facing the lowly Brewers, Hendricks struck out eight in six innings. On Monday, he fanned nine Royals across six innings. He gave up only two hits, flummoxing the Royals with his upper-80s fastball and his changeup.

“He had a good changeup,” outfielder Alex Gordon said. “Kept us off-balance. It made his other pitches pretty good.”

Kansas City experienced some relief in the bottom of the sixth, when Cubs manager Joe Maddon pulled Hendricks for a pinch-hitter. There was a runner at first for the first time all evening for Chicago. Outfielder Jorge Soler had spoiled Ventura’s bid for a perfect game with a leadoff single.

Now Hendricks shook hands in the dugout and rookie Kyle Schwarber, one of several young players aiding Chicago’s impending playoff berth, came to hit for him. Pitching coach Dave Eiland jogged to the dugout to confer with Ventura.

Soon after, Schwarber flied out to left. Ventura iced outfielder Dexter Fowler for the third strike and the third out of the frame. An inning later, after a leadoff walk and an infield single, Ventura induced a 4-6-3 double play off the bat of infielder Tommy La Stella. When infielder Starlin Castro swung over a vicious curveball, Ventura had completed his seventh inning of work.

“It was just one of those days,” Grifol said, “where one run was going to determine the game.”

Cubs 1

Royals 0, 11 innings

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No outs when winning run scored.

a-lined out for Hendricks in the 6th. b-grounded out for Ventura in the 8th. c-struck out for Madson in the 11th. d-homered for Rodney in the 11th.

1-ran for St.Castro in the 10th.

LOB: Kansas City 5, Chicago 3. 2B: Moustakas (32). HR: Denorfia (3), off M.Almonte. RBIs: Denorfia (16). SB: A.Gordon (2). Runners left in scoring position: Kansas City 2 (Moustakas, Rios); Chicago 1 (St.Castro). RISP: Kansas City 0 for 3; Chicago 0 for 2. GIDP: S.Perez, La Stella. DP: Kansas City 1 (Zobrist, A.Escobar, Hosmer); Chicago 1 (St.Castro, A.Russell, Coghlan).

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M.Almonte pitched to 1 batter in the 11th.

Umpires: Home, Phil Cuzzi; First, Tony Randazzo; Second, Gerry Davis; Third, Rob Drake. Time: 2:49. Att: 40,552.

AP-WF-09-29-15 0300GMT

This story was originally published September 28, 2015 at 10:17 PM with the headline "Cubs edge Royals 1-0 in 11 innings, hurting KC’s home-field quest."