Mondesi’s walk-off hit lifts Kansas City Royals to a 1-0 win in 10 innings vs. Guardians
The Kansas City Royals found a way to seemingly pack a week’s worth of edge-of-your-seat moments into a game that featured just one run.
Adalberto Mondesi’s walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the 10th inning drove in the game’s lone run in the Royals’ 1-0 win over the Cleveland Guardians in front of an announced 17,103 at Kauffman Stadium on Saturday.
Mondesi’s clutch hit put the final touches on a day that included a stellar pitching performance led by six scoreless innings from starter Brad Keller, enough defensive gems to fill a highlight reel including a potentially game-saving one by Bobby Witt Jr. and Salvador Perez, and the major-league debut of reliever Collin Snider in extra innings of a scoreless game.
Snider ended up with the win.
The nail-biting victory gave the Royals wins in their first two games of the season and put them in position to clinch the season-opening series on Sunday.
“My first walk-off,” Mondesi said with a big smile. “It was a good one, especially starting the season that way. First hit.”
Mondesi, who’d gone 0 for 2 with two strikeouts and a walk, came to the plate with runners on the corners and no outs in the 10th.
The extra-inning rules automatically start the inning with a runner on second base, and Hunter Dozier lined a single to right field to start the inning.
That gave Mondesi the chance to bat with a drawn-in infield.
When asked about his approach in that at-bat, Mondesi replied instantly with a hearty laugh, “Try to make contact.”
His response seemingly acknowledged that he hadn’t put a ball in play prior to his final at-bat. He’d gone 0 for 3 in the opener.
“It’s a long season,” Mondesi continued. “... You want to help the team, but it is what it is. Just keep working, try not to put my head down.”
Mondesi smacked a first-pitch 100-mph cutter from Guardians reliever Emmanuel Clase through the middle into center field to drive in the winning run and set off the celebration.
“What a win, all the way around,” Keller said. “The defense was amazing. Huge plays all game from literally the first inning all the way to Bobby’s play in the 10th. It was just a great team win.”
Keller went toe-to-toe in a pitcher’s duel with Guardians starter Zach Plesac (5 2/3 scoreless innings).
Keller allowed just two hits and walked one in six scoreless innings. He struck out five. He completed six efficient innings on just 69 pitches, 46 of them strikes.
“You look around our infield and our outfield and we’ve got Gold Gloves all over the place,” Keller said. “We’ve got three shortstops playing three different positions. I mean, it’s one of the best defenses I think I’ve ever seen, and you gotta let them work. They did an unbelievable job all day.”
All three of the hits he allowed were singles, including one infield single. The Guardians grounded into a pair of double plays, one started by Mondesi at shorstop and the other by first baseman Carlos Santana.
“I said it all spring, Brad looked like a different pitcher,” Royals manager Mike Matheny said. “It was rhythm. It was control. It was making pitches, using all of his pitches including the changeup. He just set such a great tone and was so efficient. Pounding the zone. Getting ahead.
“I mean that’s everything we were hoping to see. He did a great job and handed it off to a bullpen that was just so impressive. Right down the line, every single one of them. Then hand the ball to a kid in his debut in a tough situation.”
Royals relievers Dylan Coleman (one inning), Amir Garrett (2/3 of an inning), Taylor Clarke (1/3 inning) and Josh Staumont (one inning) shut down the Guardians through nine innings.
Andrew Benintendi, who won a Gold Glove last season, made a leaping catch against the left-field wall in foul territory to help keep the Guardians offense quiet.
Snider got the call to pitch in his first major-league game in the 10th.
“Coming in with a guy on second base, a little bit trick for your first outing in the big leagues,” Snider said. “I just tried to treat it like I would any other outing, though, trust my stuff. From there, I know I’ve got guys behind the plate, guys in the field behind me, and they came up huge for me today.
“After that first pitch, honestly I feel like I just settled in a little bit more. But a crazy experience. It was loud!”
With one out, Guardians infielder Ernie Clement hit a ball up the middle ticketed for center field. Mondesi swooped in out of nowhere and gloved it.
He nearly threw Clement out at first base, but by keeping the ball on the infield, he kept the lead runner from scoring.
With runners on the corners and one out, the Royals played the infield in. Oscar Mercado smashed a bullet on the ground toward third base. If it got past Witt, it’s almost a sure double and at least one run scores.
Instead, Witt Jr. made an outstanding backhand stop while moving toward the foul line and then threw from a knee while falling to get a runner at the plate.
Perez hauled in the throw on the first-base side of home plate and quickly reached back in time to tag the runner trying to score from third.
“With Bobby and Salvy, both ends of that are plus-plus play,” Matheny said. “That gave us a chance for our offense to make something happen.”
This story was originally published April 9, 2022 at 6:14 PM.
