The Royals found their answer in the bullpen, and for once it wasn’t the part of the roster dragging them down.
Kansas City beat the White Sox 5-4 on a night when the game tilted back and forth early, then settled into a stretch where every inning felt like it might be the one that decided it. The Royals jumped out fast, lost the lead, and then reclaimed it in the seventh before the relievers shut the door.
It started with a first inning that looked like the Royals might blow things open. Carter Jensen opened the game with a single to right, Bobby Witt followed with a ground ball single just left of second base, and after Witt moved up, Jac Caglianone’s hard grounder produced an out but set up runners at second and third.
Maikel Garcia then drove in two with a single, and Vinnie Pasquantino added another RBI with a double down the third-base line. Bryan Hudson was done after that, and Erick Fedde came in as the bulk arm.
He nearly escaped with no further damage, but Michael Massey’s grounder to short turned into a wide throw to first, letting Pasquantino score and pushing Kansas City to a 4-0 lead after one.
The Royals had another chance to bury Chicago in the second when they loaded the bases, but Pasquantino popped out to end the inning and Fedde survived. That miss mattered because the White Sox answered in a hurry.
After Seth Lugo breezed through the first two innings, Chicago started stringing things together in the third. Chase Meidroth opened with a bunt single, Braden Montgomery singled later in the inning, and Sam Antonacci was hit by a pitch to load the bases.
Then came the swing of momentum: Kyle Teel, Miguel Vargas, and Munetaka Murakami delivered three straight hits, capped by a double, and the game was tied. A grounder to Pasquantino at home cut down Vargas trying to score, but another hit by pitch loaded the bases again before Lugo finally got Meidroth out for the second time in the inning.
By then, he had already thrown more than 30 pitches, and the Royals’ 4-0 cushion was gone.
Lugo’s night ended in the fourth after Montgomery and Antonacci reached again on back-to-back singles. Anthony Gose entered with one out and runners on first and second, walked the bases loaded, then got Vargas to bounce into a double play to escape the jam. Fedde couldn’t make it through the fourth either, walking Isaac Collins to start the inning before a double play erased the threat and kept Chicago from breaking through.
That pattern held for a while. Three straight half-innings ended with double plays, including two against the Royals, and the game drifted into a stalemate.
Kansas City finally broke it in the seventh, and Jensen was in the middle of it again. He singled for the third time on the night, Bobby Witt reached on a fielder’s choice, and after Caglianone grounded out to move Witt up, Garcia lined a ball into the left-field corner to bring Witt home and restore the lead at 5-4.
Gose and Connor Thomas did their part in the middle innings, combining for 3 2/3 scoreless frames for Kansas City.
Then came the late relief work the Royals have been searching for.
Lucas Erceg handled the eighth and needed just nine pitches to retire all three hitters he faced, a clean inning that sent the game to the ninth and added to the sense that he may be settling back into a high-leverage role after his minor league stint. Steven Cruz took over from there after not appearing since Saturday, when he blew a save against Pittsburgh.
This time he looked in command, striking out the first two batters before finishing the game with a flyout to center. He did allow a single, but he earned the save.
The win kept Cleveland in first place for another day and gave the Royals a chance to take the series from Chicago on Wednesday.
In Other News...
Royals Fans Are About To Witness A Denny Matthews Milestone
Denny Matthews is about to reach a number that says as much about staying power as it does about baseball. The longtime Royals broadcaster will call his 8,000th game, a staggering marker for a voice that has been with the franchise since its beginning in 1969 and has spent more than five decades chronicling the clubs highs and lows.
For Kansas City fans, Matthews has been there for every era that mattered, from division winners to pennant runs to World Series championships. He already has the Ford C. Frick Award and a place in multiple halls of fame, but this next milestone adds another layer to a broadcast career that has become part of the Royals identity. [Read more 🡒]
Royals Close Season With Bobby Witt Jr. Facing One Big Finish
As the Royals head into their final series against the Guardians, the focus turns to a few late-season markers that still matter around the clubhouse. Michael Wacha is closing in on a workload milestone, Noah Cameron has put together a stronger second half, and the rotation picture for the weekend gives Kansas City one last chance to take stock before the offseason begins.
Bobby Witt Jr. is the name that stands out most, even with the power not showing up as often lately. He still has a shot to finish at 20 home runs, a tidy benchmark for a player who has carried so much of the lineup all year, and it gives this last set of games a little extra weight for a team that is already looking ahead while still trying to squeeze one more meaningful finish out of the season. [Read more 🡒]
Royals Face An Awkward First Base Decision Involving Vinnie And Sal
Vinnie Pasquantino has given the Royals a real middle-of-the-order presence against right-handed pitching, but the split has been hard to ignore. Against left-handers, his production drops off sharply, while Salvador Perez has the kind of track record that plays better in those matchups and could help stabilize first base if the club chose to get creative with the alignment.
A straight platoon might be the cleanest way to squeeze more offense out of the position, but the Royals are not operating in a vacuum. Pasquantinos role matters, Perez is still one of the faces of the team, and there is plenty of room for discomfort in asking either player to give way often enough to make it work. For now, first base looks like one of those spots where the logic is obvious, even if the path to actually doing it is not. [Read more 🡒]