Nicky Lopez delivers clutch hit as Kansas City Royals win series finale in St. Louis
The Kansas City Royals found a way to turn one game into three different nail-biting experiences — with a 2-hour, 10-minute rain delay mixed in for good measure.
Following the delay in the top of the ninth inning of a tie game Sunday, Royals infielder Nicky Lopez swatted an RBI single into right field. Lopez’s first career go-ahead RBI in the ninth inning or later proved the difference in the Royals’ 6-5 win over the St. Louis Cardinals in the finale of their three-game series in front of an announced 31,943 at Busch Stadium.
The Royals (48-62) used 19 players in the game, including seven pitchers, as they avoided being swept by their cross-state rivals in the first leg of the I-70 series. The Cardinals (55-56) will visit KC next weekend.
“It was a long game for sure, but it was good to leave here with a win,” Lopez said. “I liked the ending for sure.”
The Royals led by as many as four runs at one point and held a 5-2 advantage going into the eighth inning.
The Cardinals rally started with what seemed like a harmless infield single against Royals veteran reliever Greg Holland, who pitched for the Cardinals in 2018.
They loaded the bases with that infield single, a walk and a hit batter before Scott Barlow took over for Holland with one out. Barlow entered as part of a double switch that inserted Jarrod Dyson into the game.
Barlow gave up a sacrifice fly and an RBI single, but still had a chance to get out of the inning with a one-run lead. However, Nolan Arenado fought off a 3-2 slider and dropped it into center field in front of a closing Michael A. Taylor for a game-tying RBI single.
With the score tied in the ninth just before the rain started, the Royals infielder Hanser Alberto singled and Dyson dropped down a well-placed bunt.
Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt fielded Dyson’s bunt and gambled by going after the lead runner, Alberto, advancing to second. Goldschmidt’s throw veered off line and allowed Alberto to advance to third and Dyson to second base.
Just as the Royals started to bounce back in the top of the ninth with the help of a Cardinals defensive miscue, the rain brought it all to an abrupt halt.
“That’s tough on the guys,” Royals manager Mike Matheny said. “They’d been kind of pushing through, and then (they’re) trying to stay sharp not knowing how long it’s going to take but knowing that we’re probably going to play again.
“To just get a lot of momentum there too, Dys getting the bunt for us and them to be under some pressure. Then being in a really good spot and all of a sudden having to slam on the brakes, is not ideal.”
Then rain stopped the game with two men on and Whit Merrifield about to step to the plate against Cardinals reliever Alex Reyes.
“It was tough because it stops, and it stopped for two hours,” Lopez said of the delay. “It wasn’t just only 30 minutes and then you go back out there. It was one of those that we had to kind of just re-focus. We took a little down time, which was nice, but one of those where you have to re-focus.”
Lopez said he took about 15-20 minutes to nap in his locker during the delay.
Following the delay, Reyes returned to the mound, Merrifield hit a grounder to shortstop and Alberto broke for home. Alberto got tagged out sliding into home for the first out of the inning.
Lopez fouled off a bunt attempt and fell behind 0-2 in the count before he put his bat on a 97 mph sinker from Reyes and drove in Dyson.
“I got a good pitch to bunt and bunted it foul, so I was a little disappointed in that,” Lopez said. “I take pride in being able to do the small things right, move the runner, safety squeeze. So when it went foul, I was a little upset. Then he went to 0-2, I just knew I had to get into battle mode, get into my two-strike approach and just try to put the ball in play. Luckily I was able to get a fastball in and find a hole.”
Andrew Benintendi pinch hit for Salvador Perez in the ninth. Matheny said Perez, who missed Friday’s series opener due to illness, was pulled because he’d been “zapped” physically.
Royals left-handed reliever Richard Lovelady retired the side in order in the bottom of the ninth for his first major-league save.
“It was thrilling,” Lovelady said. “I was pumped. I was excited. I really was. This is a big win for us to pick up especially to close out the long road stand we just had. This is big to go back home and get ready for the Yankees.”
Hunter Dozier (2 for 4, double, two runs scored) and Taylor (2 for 4, run, stolen base) collected two hits apiece. Merrifield (1 for 4, run scored) had a hit, a walk and recorded his MLB-leading 30th stolen base.
This story was originally published August 8, 2021 at 7:30 PM.
