Bobby Witt Jr. put the Royals on his back in Wednesday’s series finale, and Kansas City ended its nine-game homestand with a 5-2 win over the Diamondbacks.
The game turned in the fifth inning when Arizona reliever Michael Soroka left a 94.9 mph sinker over the middle of the plate in a tie game. Soroka had just walked Carter Jensen on six pitches and appeared to be trying to steal a strike, but Witt was sitting on it. He launched a three-run homer into the left-field seats, his 18th of the season, and the Royals grabbed a lead they never gave back.
Kansas City had already opened the scoring earlier, giving the offense a much-needed early spark after being held down the previous two nights. The Royals finished the night with the same 5-2 margin and improved to 65-82.
Jensen added his own loud moment, crushing his 23rd homer of the year. That leaves the Royals rookie one shy of Bob Hamelin’s club rookie record of 24 home runs, set in 1994.
While the big-league club was finishing strong at home, Tony Gonsolin kept building his case in Omaha. He made his third rehab start for Triple-A Omaha on Tuesday night and tossed five scoreless innings, allowing three hits and a walk while striking out two. Gonsolin needed 64 pitches, 42 for strikes, in Omaha’s win.
His next outing is set for Sunday, and after that the Royals will decide whether he keeps rehabbing or could potentially slide into Kansas City’s rotation with two weeks left in the season.
“We’ll see how that one goes,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “Obviously, Monday will be a day off across the board for them, and we have that day off as well [in Houston]. We’ll be able to see what happens at that point.”
There was also a notable prospect note in the system: Angeibel Gomez is being projected as the Royals’ top prospect in 2028. Signed for $2.9 million in January, the 17-year-old has surged after hitting .361/.467/.653 with nine homers and a 19/28 K/BB ratio over 47 games in the Dominican Summer League. The report notes that his power has already shown up in games faster than most players his age, and that his right-handed bat-to-ball skills have been better than expected.
Around the organization, Quad Cities opened its best-of-3 playoff series with a 1-0 lead over the South Bend Cubs, with Game 2 set for Thursday night.
Elsewhere in baseball, the Brewers beat the Cubs to clinch their fourth straight NL Central title, the Pirates and White Sox were involved in a benches-clearing incident, George Lombard Jr. hit a grand slam for the Yankees, the Rays moved closer to a return to the playoffs for the first time since 2023, Elly De La Cruz homered for a fifth straight game, Jose Altuve collected his 2,500th career hit, the Orioles rallied past the Guardians in a major AL Wild Card matchup, and Jackson Merrill delivered a big night for the Padres in the race for the final NL Wild Card spot.
In Other News...
Salvador Perez Faces A Royals Reality That Could Change His Role
Salvador Perez has spent much of the second half in a different spot than Royals fans are used to seeing him, with the veteran dealing with an elbow injury that has limited his time behind the plate. Carter Jensen has handled more of the catching duties, leaving Perez to work as the designated hitter more often while the club tries to manage his workload and keep his bat in the lineup.
At 36, Perez is in the final year of his two-year contract and still has not decided whether he will keep playing beyond 2027. For now, his focus is on finishing the season strong, getting healthy in the offseason and staying part of Kansas Citys push to get back into playoff contention next year, even if the shape of his role keeps changing. [Read more 🡒]
Royals Quietly Moved On From A Veteran Depth Bet That Went Nowhere
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Drury is now a free agent, but his path forward comes with an immediate limitation: he is not eligible for postseason play this year. For the Royals, it closes the book on a low-risk depth bet that never turned into much, and it leaves the front office with one less veteran name in reserve as the season pushes toward its finish. [Read more 🡒]
Royals Still Have A Chance To Wreck Somebodys Playoff Push
The Royals are all but out of the postseason chase themselves, sitting nine games back of the third American League Wild Card spot as of Sept. 7. But with 17 games left, they still have plenty of room to shape the race for others, and that matters in a crowded late-season field where every loss can ripple beyond one clubhouse.
Kansas Citys final stretch is loaded with teams that are still trying to hold or improve their playoff position, which means the Royals could play spoiler in a very real way. Boston, Houston, Chicago and Cleveland are all on the schedule before the season ends, giving the Royals a chance to leave a mark on the standings even if their own path to October is all but closed. [Read more 🡒]