Kansas City Royals fall to NY Yankees in Game 1 of ALDS. These were the key moments
The Kansas City Royals entered Game 1 of the American League Division Series as perceived underdogs against the top-seeded New York Yankees.
On Saturday, the Royals proved they’re a worthy contender, but came up just short on a few key plays.
KC lost a 6-5 slugfest at Yankee Stadium. Alex Verdugo hit a go-ahead RBI single in the seventh inning as New York took a 1-0 series lead.
Verdugo’s single followed a controversial call at second base in which the Yankees’ Jazz Chisholm, who scored the winning run, was called safe sliding into second and the play stood on a review. Michael Massey, who attempted to apply the tag, was visibly frustrated over the play postgame.
“In the moment, I felt pretty convinced in the tag that I got him,” Massey said.
Eight walks also stung the Royals in critical moments.
“(It’s) uncharacteristic for us to issue the free passes, but that’s an exciting ballgame,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “There’s a lot going on. It’s back and forth, two really good teams.”
The teams traded punches early. The Royals took a 1-0 lead in the second inning, but the Yankees quickly responded.
Gleyber Torres hit a two-run homer in the third. It was the first time the Royals had trailed in three postseason games. Torres hit the baseball just over the right-field wall (a Yankee Stadium staple) that registered as a homer in only one of 30 MLB stadiums.
The Royals rallied in the fourth inning. MJ Melendez also took advantage of the short porch and hit a two-run homer of his own. His blast traveled 363 feet, per Statcast, as the Royals took a 3-2 lead.
“I feel like we had good at-bats and something that is good momentum for us going forward,” Melendez said.
From there, Game 1 became a battle of the bullpens.
The Yankees rallied with two runs in the fifth inning. They scored both runs on bases-loaded walks from Royals relievers Angel Zerpa and John Schreiber.
The Royals answered with Garrett Hampson’s two-run single in the sixth inning. Hampson pinch hit for Kyle Isbel and delivered against Yankees reliever Tim Hill. The runs were unearned after a Yankees throwing error in the frame.
Both starters were not efficient on Saturday. Royals right-hander Michael Wacha lasted four innings and allowed three runs. Yankees ace Gerrit Cole was chased after five innings while allowing four runs (three earned).
“(I found) myself in some traffic early on,” Wacha said. “I escaped that with no runs, but you know, too many walks there in that outing. Got to clean that up.”
Game 2 will be at 7:38 p.m. Central on Monday night.
“It’s a five-game series for a reason,” Melendez said. “A lot of confidence for us coming back here on Monday and taking care of business.”
Missed previous Royals coverage?
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Here are more notables from Saturday’s game:
Michael Wacha escapes first-inning jam
Wacha was tested early against the Yankees.
In the first inning, Wacha allowed a leadoff walk to Torres and a double to New York superstar Juan Soto. The runners offered the Yankees a chance to take a quick lead over the Royals.
However, Wacha was masterful in the high-pressure spot.
He struck out AL MVP front-runner Aaron Judge with his stellar changeup. Judge was fed the pitch three consecutive times before swinging over the top of an 84.3-mph change.
Then, Wacha retired Yankees catcher Austin Wells with a ground out. Yuli Gurriel made a heads-up play by throwing out Torres attempting to score from third base.
Wacha finished the inning by striking out Giancarlo Stanton. The Yankees slugger struck out on a 95.9-mph fastball at the top of the zone.
“That first inning was taxing,” Quatraro said. “You’ve got to figure — there’s more going on there emotionally draining, just the atmosphere, all of that kind of stuff. I’m almost accounting for an extra inning there after that first inning.”
Fifth-inning jam was a different story
The Yankees didn’t go quietly in the fifth inning. Instead, they chased Wacha from the game.
And they scored two runs to take a 4-3 lead.
Wacha walked Torres for the second time in the game. It was his final batter as Quatraro turned to his bullpen.
The decision didn’t pan out. Quatraro inserted left-handed reliever Angel Zerpa, the hero in Game 2 of AL Wild Card series, against Judge and Soto.
“We know how good Soto is, and we thought we’d be able to get after him with Zerpa,” Quatraro said.
Soto singled and Judge walked to set up a bases-loaded chance. This time, Zerpa walked in a run as Yankees catcher Austin Wells reached base.
The Yankees tied the game at 3. Quatraro made a pitching change as veteran reliever John Schreiber was inserted into the game. He would also walk in a run as Anthony Volpe reached base.
Two bases-loaded walks gave the Yankees a 4-3 lead. Schreiber escaped the inning by striking out Oswaldo Cabrera, but the damage was already done.
“Free passes hurt, especially when you’ve got the bases loaded and all of that,” Schreiber said. “Just got to do a better job of executing the pitches and getting ahead. ... We are going to be better Monday.”
Next on the KC Royals playoff schedule:
The Royals return to Yankee Stadium on Monday night for Game 2 of the ALDS. KC left-hander Cole Ragans will make his second playoff start.
Ragans tossed six scoreless innings against the Baltimore Orioles in Game 1 of the AL Wild Card Series. He exited that game with left calf cramps, but is healthy heading into his start against the Yankees.
The Yankees will start left-hander Carlos Rodón. The veteran hurler was 16-9 with a 3.96 ERA this season.
This story was originally published October 5, 2024 at 9:12 PM.
