Salvador Perez ties Kansas City Royals’ home run record, then leaves game with injury
Kansas City Royals star Salvador Perez mashed his way into another record in his first at-bat of the night Wednesday, but then left the game a couple innings later because of a right ankle sprain.
Perez entered the night leading Major League Baseball in home runs and RBIs, and he launched the first pitch he saw from Cleveland Indians starting pitcher Zach Plesac for a three-run blast 439-feet to center field in the first inning of the Royals’ 10-5 win at Kauffman Stadium.
That homer tied Perez with friend and former teammate Jorge Soler for the most in a single-season in franchise history. Soler hit 48 in 2019, the season Perez missed after having Tommy John surgery in March of that year.
“It was amazing, another great night,” Perez said of tying the record. “Thank God. It’s amazing, running these bases all season long and now to see me at home tie Jorge Soler. That’s amazing. I was so happy. We’re going to see. We’ve got four more games. We’re going to see.”
Following his first-inning home run, Perez received a curtain call for the second night in a row from the fans in the ballpark. Perez has 48 home runs and 121 RBIs in 157 games this season.
Prior to his second at-bat of the night, Perez had to be helped up by teammates in the dugout as he got hurt coming off the field at the end of the second inning.
“I don’t even know what happened,” Perez said. “I missed the last step on the stairs down to the dugout and I turned my ankle. We’re going to see how it goes tomorrow, and we’ll see what happens.”
Perez did bat in the second inning when his spot in the lineup came up. He struck out to end the inning, and backup catcher Cam Gallagher took over behind the plate at the start of the third inning.
“I saw him grimacing and I saw Nick [Kenney], our trainer, holding his leg,” Royals All-Star second baseman Whit Merrifield said. “I thought his leg was cramping up. It was a muggy night, so I thought it was a cramp. Then somebody told me what happened, and it kind of takes the air out ... Especially when he’s doing something that special. It definitely took the air out of the dugout, no denying it.”
After he came out of the game, Perez went back into the clubhouse and training room to get evaluated. The elation and excitement of him tying that franchise record quickly gave way to a feeling of uncertainty and worry among his teammates and the coaching staff.
“I’m still kind of getting over that, to be honest,” Royals manager Mike Matheny said after the game. “You see that guy go down after all this just happened. You could see how much he means to our club. I can’t think of many times all season, but there was a mood in that dugout that was atypical. ...Yeah, the guys were concerned. You talk about a guy being the heart and soul, that’s who he is. So it was good to get some of the reports. The trainers kept coming back, kind of trying to keep us updated. But we were very worried.”
Perez expressed a desire to be in the lineup on Thursday night, provided he feels OK. He was in the starting lineup as the designated hitter in the lineup released Thursday afternoon.
“I think just put some tape [on it],” Perez said Wednesday night. “Like back in the day. Put some tape, take some pills, go play and see what happens.”
The Royals have four games remaining this season. Perez’s next home run would set the franchise record, and he’s still in position to finish the season with the most home runs and RBIs in the majors. Perez leads the Blue Jays’ Vladimir Guerrero Jr. by two homers and the White Sox’s Jose Abreu by eight RBIs entering Thursday.
This story was originally published September 29, 2021 at 8:32 PM.
