Kansas City Royals’ Salvador Perez delivered a big blow to Angels, Noah Syndergaard
Salvador Perez stated definitively for anyone inquiring that his enthusiasm and demonstrative behavior had everything to do with the Kansas City Royals and the emotion of coming through in a big moment for his team. The opponent was immaterial.
Perez went 2 for 4 with a home run and two RBIs Monday night in a 6-2 win over the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium and tied former teammate Alcides Escobar for ninth place on the Royals’ career hits list with 1,208.
Not only has Perez become one of the biggest thorns in the side of the Angels — his .326 batting average against them ranks third among active players — but his home run also came against pitcher Noah Syndergaard, who was part of the New York Mets team the Royals beat in the 2015 World Series.
Syndergaard famously drew the ire of the Royals for throwing a brushback pitch high and tight to Escobar in the World Series.
“I didn’t even know that,” Perez said about his batting average against the Angels. “I’m just trying to do my job. OK. I’m just trying to do my job every game, every night, trying to help my team win. I don’t think about average, how I hit here, how I hit over there. I just try to do my job every time I play.”
Perez has hit 18 for 63 (.286) in his last 16 games. He hit five home runs, scored 12 runs and registered 18 RBIs during that span.
In the eighth inning of the series-opening win against the Angels, Perez came to the plate with a man on and one out in a one-run game.
Syndergaard struck out Perez in the sixth inning on three pitches, finishing with two swing-and-miss changeups.
In the eighth, Perez bashed a 1-0 changeup on the outer half of the plate 420 feet to center field. That gave the Royals a three-run lead. Perez pointed into the dugout after hitting the home run, and he pounded his chest as he rounded first base.
“It was based on the situation of the game,” Perez said. “Nothing about Syndergaard. Nothing about the Angels. It was kind of an exciting moment. We’re up one run in the eighth inning. We faced one of the best pitchers in the league, he’s still in the game, and I hit a homer and tried bring that win for us. It was amazing.”
Perez said he was pointing to Royals coach John Mabry, who told him to be ready for a changeup in that at-bat.
Hunter Dozier added a solo homer later in the inning to make it 6-2.
At that point in the game adding on to the lead loomed large with the Angels scheduled to bring both of their former MVP sluggers, Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani, to the plate.
Reliever Scott Barlow retired the side in order in the eighth on a lineout, a fly out and a strikeout.
“Scotty has been great about different innings and being there and available when the big part of their lineup comes up,” Royals manager Mike Matheny said. “He had a couple hard hits, guys playing in the right spots ended up being outs. We needed a little bit more breathing room because we know this is a dangerous offense.”
Left-hander Kris Bubic continued a strong run of outings by Royals starting pitchers during their road trip. Through seven games in California, starters have recorded a 1.84 ERA. Bubic allowed two runs in six innings with a season-high seven strikeouts on Monday while throwing to Perez.
The win marked the fourth for the Royals in their past five games.
“We’re starting to see some of the pieces come together, the big hits, the action, the pressure, the defense, watching the bullpen,” Matheny said. “That was probably one of (Dylan) Coleman’s best outings of the year. Josh (Staumont) being able to finish it off. All the little components that we’ve been wanting to see everything put together, we’ve had a few of those over the last few games.”
This story was originally published June 21, 2022 at 8:06 AM.