How KC Royals infielder Michael Massey snapped his homer drought with a 417-foot blast
Royals second baseman Michael Massey had waited long enough. After 30 games, he wanted to see some results after the countless hours devoted to offseason work.
Massey eyed his first home run of the season. In the fourth inning, he got his chance to circle the bases for the fifth time in his big-league career.
“It’s nice to get one,” Massey said. “I don’t consider myself a home run hitter, as I try to hit line drives, but I know I’m certainly capable of hitting the ball out of the ballpark. It is just the product of getting a good pitch to hit and putting a good swing on it.”
Massey drilled the 417-foot home run off Chicago White Sox starter Lance Lynn. The ball landed in the right-field seats and snapped a 112 at-bat homerless streak for the Royals infielder.
The Royals went on to beat the White Sox 9-1.
Massey’s home run registered a 106.2 exit velocity at a 36-degree launch angle. It was his first homer since Sept. 30, 2022, when he hit one against the Cleveland Guardians.
Massey is currently batting .500 (9-for-18) across a six-game hitting streak.
“I know he was relieved,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “He said a couple of times, he doesn’t hit home runs too much early in the year and that they tend to come later. …
“In spring training, he hit some really long home runs. You can’t put a whole lot of stock into spring training, but you can tell he’s got power.”
Massey is one of several Royals experiencing a power surge. This month, the Royals have hit 17 home runs through nine games. During their 10-game homestand, Kansas City added 43 extra-base hits en route to a .301 team batting average.
On Wednesday, Massey went 3-for-4 and added a double to his ledger. He is hitting .340 with five multi-hit efforts in his last 14 games.
“I think we are showing what we are capable of,” Massey said. “I think up and down the lineup, guys are swinging it and making hard contact. (We) are coming up big with runners in scoring position, and that is something that we struggled with early — making the proper adjustments.
“A lot of that is (Royals assistant hitting coach) Keoni (De Renne) and Zumi (Alec Zumwalt) helping us and helping us feel prepared. We go up there ready to do damage.”
The Royals improved to 11-27 with Wednesday’s victory. They will look for the series win against the White Sox Thursday afternoon.
