Young Royals players, Alex Gordon stomp over the White Sox in 10-5 win

Now is not the time for bold proclamations.

The young Royals players getting regular cracks at the starting lineup are still searching for firm footing in the major leagues. They’re still juggling the continuous lessons with the grind of playing at this level. They’re still far away from having anything figured out.

But as the Royals beat the White Sox 10-5 at Guaranteed Rate Field on Wednesday night, it was difficult not to let the mind wander for a beat. The display of athleticism, both on the basepaths and in the field of play, and the unrelenting march through the lineup in the fifth inning conjured up memories of the championship days.

“A little bit,” manager Ned Yost conceded.

Indeed, Wednesday’s cast of characters was different. A week ago, third baseman Mike Moustakas boarded the Royals charter plane for New York; a week ago, prospect Ryan O’Hearn was playing in Sacramento, Calif., with the Class AAA Omaha Storm Chasers.

Nonetheless, there were encouraging signs to be gleaned from this victory.

New outfielder Brett Phillips showcased his speed scoring from second base on a head-first dive after O’Hearn scorched a two-out single to left field in the fourth inning. Nine batters went to the plate in the Royals’ half of the fifth inning. Three days after hitting his first major-league home run at Yankee Stadium, Rosell Herrera flaunted some power from the right-handed batter’s box when he ripped an RBI ground-rule double to the left-field corner off lefty reliever Xavier Cedeno in the fifth. Adalberto Mondesi scored a pair of runs.

The list also includes Herrera’s range at third base, where he’ll continue to log innings in the final months of the season. It includes Phillips’ canon arm and Mondesi’s penchant for flashy defense.

It’s the kind of progress a cellar-dwelling team looks for in a lost season.

“You’ve gotta get to a point where — and they all, to a man, in there think they can be good or else they wouldn’t be here,” Yost said before the game. “But you gotta get to a point where you know in your heart that you’re good and that you can compete, and that you’re ingrained here. That takes time. You gain that through experience and through success and getting it done.”

Wednesday’s victory, which allowed the Royals to improve to 34-73, should serve as a means to that end.

Trouble after the fifth: Royals starting pitcher Jakob Junis’ first pitch of the game was yanked into the right-field Craft Kave, the same area of the field where newcomer O’Hearn dumped his first major-league hit Tuesday night, by Yoan Moncada. The White Sox took a 1-0 lead on the homer, which was the 26th Junis allowed this season.

Junis cruised through most of his start. He was only at 54 pitches through five innings. Yet as the Royals offense smacked around White Sox starter Dylan Covey for seven runs (four earned) in 4 1/3 innings, Junis got some extra rest. He couldn’t make it out of the sixth inning and was charged four runs on six hits in 5 2/3 innings.

“I’m not going to put the blame on that,” said Junis, who won for the first time since May 18. “I lost my feel. I wasn’t attacking and balls got away from me. ... It was a little bit of a timing thing, my direction was off both sides of the plate.”

A mixture of players from both the old and new guards ensured Junis’ winless streak wouldn’t continue for an 11th consecutive start. O’Hearn, Herrera and Phillips combined with Alex Gordon and Salvador Perez, who caught two players trying to steal second base, to keep the Royals offense churning along.

First baseman Lucas Duda chipped in with an RBI single in the fifth; Mondesi laid down a sacrifice bunt in the third, reached on an error and scored on Gordon’s two-run double two batters later. Mondesi scored a second time when Gordon launched his seventh homer of the season into the right-field bullpen in the sixth.

This story was originally published August 1, 2018 at 10:27 PM.