Michael Massey was special, but this Kansas City Royals baserunning mistake was costly
Kansas City Royals rookie Alec Marsh was introduced to the powerful New York Yankees lineup on Friday night.
Marsh, who was making his fourth career start, allowed five runs and three homers in 5 1/3 innings of work. Yankees trio Franchy Cordero, Billy McKinney and Gleyber Torres each homered to power New York to a 5-4 victory.
“I think the majority of the story is a couple bad pitches over the middle of the plate just got me today,” Marsh said. “Moving forward, it’s just getting back to work and making sure those misses aren’t middle-middle and just making them a little better next time.”
The Royals matched the Yankees early. Royals second baseman Michael Massey hit two home runs, including a three-run shot in the fourth inning.
KC took a brief 3-1 lead before McKinney recaptured the lead with a three-run homer of his own.
“I was more upset about giving it up the next inning because we were finally ahead,” Marsh said. “It was my game at that point and I’ve got to go back and make better pitches.”
McKinney filled the box score against the Royals. He homered and recorded two spectacular defensive catches. In the seventh inning, he robbed Royals designated hitter Drew Waters at the center field wall.
The Royals failed to produce consistent at-bats against Yankees starter Clarke Schmidt. He earned his sixth victory after allowing three runs in 5 2/3 innings.
KC collected nine hits on the night. A baserunning mistake by Royals first baseman Nick Pratto proved costly as the Royals dropped to 28-71.
Here are more notables from Friday’s game:
Royals squander fifth-inning scoring opportunity
The Royals had a chance to tie the score in the fifth inning.
Royals first baseman Nick Pratto got aboard with a leadoff single. Two batters later, Kyle Isbel hit a double into the right-field corner. Pratto circled the bases and Royals third-base coach Vance Wilson appeared to wave him home.
Meanwhile, Yankees outfielder Giancarlo Stanton had trouble getting the baseball back into the infield. However, Pratto slowed up as he rounded third base. He stopped at the bag instead of attempting to score.
“The double was kind of hit and miss,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “The ball got kicked around in the corner and we probably have a chance to send him if he rounds the base hard. That’s going to be a close call on Vance’s part whether to send him right there or not.”
The Royals were saddled with runners on second and third base but couldn’t capitalize on the situation. Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia grounded out and shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. struck out to end the threat.
When asked if Pratto should’ve scored on Garcia’s groundout — due to the Yankees having the infield back — Quatraro didn’t mince words.
“Yes, for sure,” Quatraro said.
Pratto was stranded on third base. The Royals failed to score and the Yankees took advantage in the bottom half of the inning. Yankees designated hitter Gleyber Torres hit a solo home run to propel New York to victory.
Pratto declined to speak with media members after the game.
Michael Massey has two homer night
Trailing 1-0 early on, Royals second baseman Michael Massey quickly changed things by hitting a three-run homer into the right-field seats. The blast traveled 416 feet and had a 105.6 mph exit velocity.
In the eighth inning, Massey pulled the Royals closer. He hit a solo homer in a near identical spot. This time, the homer traveled 377 feet. It was Massey’s first multi-home run game of his career.
“It felt good,” Massey said. “I got some good pitches to hit. I’ve been working really hard with the hitting coaches and they have been helping me a ton this year. It’s nice to get some results out of hit tonight.”
Massey finished 2 for 4 with 4 RBIs. He is one of three Royals to record a multi-homer game this season.
Massey was scuffling prior to Friday’s game. He entered 1 for 18 in his last six games. His lone hit was a double against the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday.
Massey had gone 23 games since his last home run. The blast came against the St. Louis Cardinals on May 29.
What’s next: The Royals continue their weekend series against the Yankees. Brady Singer will start Saturday against Gerrit Cole. Jordan Lyles will close the series on Sunday against Luis Severino.
This story was originally published July 21, 2023 at 8:44 PM.
