Carter Jensen rallies Royals to late lead at Texas, but KC loses walkoff stunner
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Carter Jensen hit a two-run homer in the top of the eighth to put KC ahead 6-3.
- Lucas Erceg blew his fifth save and took the loss as Texas won 7-6.
- Seth Lugo delivered a quality start, scattering six hits with six strikeouts.
The Kansas City Royals came into Saturday’s contest against the Texas Rangers having been outscored 31-2 in their last three games.
Woes permeated the batting order. The Royals failed to produce with runners in scoring position (RISP) and that contributed to multiple losses in an increasingly disappointing season.
Riding a four-game losing streak, the Royals needed a spark on Saturday afternoon at Globe Life Field in their second game of this series and road trip. And they got it in the form of Park Hill High School product Carter Jensen.
Inserted as KC’s leadoff hitter Saturday as manager Matt Quatraro continued to tweak his batting order, Jensen belted a two-run homer in the top of the eighth inning to put the Royals ahead 6-3.
An all-too-rare Kansas City victory seemed possible in the bottom of the frame, when Jensen — who started at catcher — made an athletic diving catch on a popup bunt to end the inning after one Rangers run had scored.
But then came closer Lucas Erceg. The KC reliever blew his fifth save of the season and took the loss allowing Texas a 7-6 walkoff win that the hosts achieved without the Royals (22-36) recording an out.
The Royals were stunned at the outcome. Especially after they had seemed to find their offensive stride in the seventh. Isaac Collins led off that inning with a double that ignited KC’s late four-run comeback from a 3-0 deficit.
Two batters later, Kyle Isbel hit a one-out single to flip over the Royals’ lineup. This provided the top of the order with a prime scoring opportunity.
The Royals cashed in when Jensen, Bobby Witt Jr. and Maikel Garcia each recorded RBI singles. Vinnie Pasquantino hit an RBI double to complete the Royals’ short-lived rally.
Earlier in the game, the Rangers jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead fueled by some critical Royals mistakes. In the fourth inning, Witt and Garcia — KC’s Gold Glove duo — committed costly errors. The mistakes led to two unearned runs.
After Rangers first baseman Jake Burger got aboard with a leadoff single, Garcia booted a ground ball off the bat of Ezequiel Duran. It appeared that Garcia took his eye off the baseball as he tried to transfer it to his throwing hand.
The ball rolled away from his grasp and Duran was safe at first as Texas had two runners on base against Royals starter Seth Lugo.
Two batters later, the Rangers used a small-ball approach to score their second run. Their first came on Josh Jung’s solo homer in the first inning.
Witt was charged with a throwing error in the fourth. He fielded a grounder in the hole but didn’t make an accurate throw to first. It was his second error of the season as Garcia recorded his third.
Garcia later exited the game with a right-hamstring strain.
The Royals have gift-wrapped unearned runs to the Rangers in this series. On Friday team captain Salvador Perez and utilityman Nick Loftin were each charged with errors in a 9-1 loss.
Lugo helped overcome KC’s early mistakes. He pitched a quality start after allowing the three runs to score. He scattered six hits, didn’t walk a batter and recorded six strikeouts.
Lugo’s pitches tallied 45 swings and 10 whiffs, per Baseball Savant. He found success with his curveball, using it primarily against the Rangers’ left-handed batters.
Relievers Alex Lange and Daniel Lynch IV helped maintain the Royals’ lead until Erceg imploded in the ninth.
Jensen hit his two-run homer off Rangers right-hander Chris Martin. It was his seventh home run of the season and came as he batted leadoff for the first time this season.
Jensen later made the game-saving play. He secured the final out of the eighth with a diving grab of Michael Helman’s botched bunt attempt.
What’s next: Royals right-hander Michael Wacha (4-2, 2.69 ERA) will start opposite Rangers righty Jack Leiter (2-4, 4.75 ERA) in Sunday’s series finale. First pitch is set for 1:35 p.m. Central Time.
