Royals showed resiliency in pivotal 8th-inning rally vs. Mariners. How it unfolded
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- Salvador Perez doubled to start the eighth inning and sparked the Royals' rally.
- Lane Thomas pinch-hit in the eighth and delivered a go-ahead RBI single.
- Matt Strahm recorded two pivotal strikeouts and Lucas Erceg earned the save.
The Kansas City Royals needed to respond.
After taking an early four-run lead in Friday’s series opener against the Mariners at T-Mobile Park, the Royals were in scramble mode. Julio Rodriguez had just tied the game in the seventh inning with his second home run of the evening.
The Mariners star’s first homer came against starting pitcher Cole Ragans in the first inning. Rodriguez’s second homer was even more devastating, as the Royals saw their good work at the plate going up in smoke.
At that point the scoreboard read: Royals 6, Mariners 6.
When the Royals came to bat in the eighth, however, team captain Salvador Perez provided the big hit in a critical moment. He doubled off Mariners reliever Jose A. Ferrer to open the inning and set the tone for a rally.
Next up was rookie Carter Jensen. Facing the tough lefty Ferrer, he moved Perez to third base in a memorable at-bat.
That set the stage for Royals manager Matt Quatraro to motion toward his bench, summoning veteran outfielder Lane Thomas to pinch-hit for Jac Caglianone.
The decision worked out well for Kansas City: Thomas hit a go-ahead RBI single and Perez scored. The Royals took a 7-6 lead and never relinquished it.
With the win, the Royals snapped a two-game losing streak and improved to 13-19. It wasn’t a flawless victory, but KC showed gritty resolve in defeating the host Mariners.
“I think the bigger thing to talk about is Carter moving (Perez) over,” Royals first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino said. “That’s a professional at-bat. It’s not going to show up in the box score and it’s not going to help his (Baseball) Savant page. It’s not going to help any of those things people love to talk about. It’s a good baseball play.”
Jensen’s at-bat was certainly emblematic of a good baseball team. He was selfless in his approach and that paved the way for Thomas to win the game for the Royals.
“Lane coming in, pinch-hitting there and putting the ball over the infield ... that’s what this game is all about,” Pasquantino said. “It’s coming up with big moments like that. We did a really nice job.”
Thomas didn’t start Friday night but made sure to keep his body warm. He stretched and hit in the batting cage during the game, following its progression and remaining ready for the moment his name was called.
He was prepared to face Ferrer and his goal was simple: Make good contact and try to push his team forward.
“I think when you are not in there, it’s the only thing I have to do,” Thomas said. “It’s to get ready for a situation like that today.
“That’s all that was going through my head. Just kind of peeking at the bullpen and getting warm when the starter’s pitch count goes up. The normal stuff.”
Thomas has been clutch for the Royals this week. On Sunday, he hit a walk-off three-run homer against the Los Angeles Angels at Kauffman Stadium.
On Friday, playing on the road, the Royals collected their second one-run victory of the season. They found their rhythm early, scoring four runs in the first inning. The Mariners chipped away at that lead and pulled even, setting the stage for Perez, Jensen, Thomas and company to do their thing.
Relievers Matt Strahm and Lucas Erceg played their own important roles in shutting the door in Seattle. Strahm had two pivotal strikeouts and Erceg earned his eighth save of the season on his 31st birthday.
“I mean, for me specifically, coming into a tie game or one-run lead, same job at hand,” Strahm said. “So nothing really changed there for me. But to be able to hold it down and pass the ball to (Erceg) and give him a birthday save, that was worth it.”
Friday’s eighth inning encapsulated how the Royals want to play this season. They pride themselves on playing complementary baseball — high-level pitching and defense along with timely hitting — in order to win games.
“I mean, putting up the four runs was nice,” Pasquantino said. “But being able to claw runs together like that, that’s even better. So that was a really nice night for the offense and (we’ll) try to continue it tomorrow.”
