Royals triumph over Oakland, Billy Butler in 8-4 victory

The volume inside the Royals clubhouse escalated shortly before noon Friday when a familiar face in an unfamiliar green and gold uniform came bounding through the doors. Billy Butler spent a decade as a member of the Royals’ organization. In town with the Oakland Athletics, he was sure to stop by his former home.

He was greeted with a hail of expletives and insults, par for the course for Butler, who occupied a unique place within the fabric of the Royals’ clubhouse. Jarrod Dyson teased him about his weight. Salvador Perez snapped a photo. Danny Duffy stopped his ping-pong game to hug Butler.

An hour later, Butler smacked a two-run double against pitcher Edinson Volquez in an 8-4 Royals victory. But before the game began, Dyson offered Butler a spot near his old locker. Alex Rios, who now occupies the space, remained at a table in the middle of the room. Butler sat for about 15 minutes with Dyson, Perez, Lorenzo Cain, Luke Hochevar and Eric Hosmer.

“I’ve spent a lot of time with these guys,” Butler said. “You spend nine months a year together, you get close.”

Butler departed this winter for a three-year, $30 million contract with Oakland. Yet he has been open about his desire to remain in touch with the Royals’ organization. He is excited to play in April at Kauffman Stadium.

The Royals were well-aware of Butler’s impending arrival. On a whiteboard a message read, “12:20 in dugout. Billy Butler Tribute.” At 12:21, the space was empty. So it remained until the game began.

Butler stepped into the batter’s box with two on and one out in the first. The crowd at Surprise Stadium gave him a lengthy ovation. Butler kept his head down and smiled. Two pitches later, Volquez fed him a waist-high, 92-mph fastball, and Butler belted it into the left-center gap.

His former teammates soon answered. After Cain roped a two-out double to left, Hosmer pulled a single through the right side of the infield. Kendrys Morales, Butler’s replacement at designated hitter, dropped a single into center field. Then, Perez launched a three-run homer.

It was Perez’s first home run of the spring. He dug out a low change-up from Oakland starter Chris Bassitt and powered it over the left-field fence. Perez, who was playing his third day in a row, caught only three innings.

Volquez gave up five hits in 2 1/3 innings. In his Royals debut, Chris Young struck out two in a scoreless inning.

Royals-Athletics spring training summary - March 13

This story was originally published March 13, 2015 at 6:01 PM with the headline "Royals triumph over Oakland, Billy Butler in 8-4 victory."