Royals turned a double play on a ball that tied for the hardest-hit in Statcast era
Royals middle infielders Nicky Lopez and Whit Merrifield have become one of the best double-play combinations in baseball this season.
Merrifield leads all MLB second basemen with 74 double-plays turned (a whopping 16 more than second-place Jake Cronenworth of the Padres). Lopez is sixth among shortstops in that category, despite playing in just 87% of the Royals’ games at that position.
The duo was put to the test during Monday night’s game against the Yankees when slugger Giancarlo Stanton crushed a ball that had an exit velocity of 122.2 mph.
MLB.com said the exit velocity tied for the hardest hit ball since Statcast was introduced in 2015. Stanton also hit a ball with a 122.2 mph exit velocity in 2017 when he was with the Marlins.
The Royals lost 8-6 in 11 innings but not before showing a “Never Give Up, Never Surrender” mentality.
They rallied after falling behind four times, which set or tied MLB records and made for a funky win-probability chart.
