'Special' Witt blasts two dingers, gets serenaded with 'MVP' chants

KANSAS CITY – Big hits in big games are becoming Bobby Witt Jr.’s thing.

The Royals shortstop homered twice and knocked a go-ahead two-run double in the Royals’ 8-4 win over the Red Sox on Wednesday night at Kauffman Stadium, salvaging the series with a victory over the team chasing Kansas City in the playoff race.

Chants of “MVP” are becoming a regular occurrence when Witt steps to the plate or comes through in a big moment. They filled The K as Witt circled the bases following his second home run of the night in the sixth inning, a 421-foot blast to straightaway center field.

Witt hears the chants, and he’s grateful for them. And he’s determined to not let it go to waste.

“They’re showing up,” Witt said. “... We’ve just got to keep doing our thing.”

It’s the Royals’ job to stay present on what they’re doing each day, not thinking too far ahead or dwelling on losses. No good can come from that still with 46 games to play.

In this space, though, we can say it: Wednesday was a big win.

Not only to finish the disappointing series with Boston on a high note going into an off-day, but also because of what else happened around the division. Cleveland suffered a doubleheader sweep. Minnesota lost.

That means the Royals, who are 12-7 since the All-Star break, are four games out of first place in American League Central while still holding onto the third AL Wild Card spot, a game ahead of Boston -- and only a half-game behind the Twins for the second Wild Card spot.

“I know I’m not supposed to talk about what’s going around the league, but in terms of what happened around the league today [with] the teams we’re close to, that was kind of a really big game for us,” Vinnie Pasquantino said.

The Royals needed an early lead Wednesday, and Witt provided it with his 21st home run of the season, a solo shot that hooked to the left-field corner. The Red Sox came back with a three-run third inning -- all unearned runs against Royals starter Cole Ragans because of second baseman Michael Massey’s error -- but the Royals remained relentless.

Kansas City flipped a two-run deficit into a three-run lead with five runs in the fourth inning. MJ Melendez and Massey both worked walks against Red Sox starter Kutter Crawford, turning 0-2 counts into free passes. Melendez saw 11 pitches, then went to third on Maikel Garcia’s single and scored on a wild pitch.

“When you’re down 0-2, you get in that swing mode because it’s a really uphill fight,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “At some point, when you start laying off some pitches, that means you’re pretty locked in on what the guy’s doing.”

Massey saw nine pitches, with his walk bringing Witt to the plate – exactly what the Red Sox didn’t want to have happen.

“With Bob behind me, I felt like they were going to come after me,” Massey said. “Sometimes in that situation, they’re not going to want to leave something in the middle, but that’s the benefit of hitting in front of Bob. I knew they were going to challenge me. So just battle.”

“Those are the little things we’re trying to do to make us a playoff team,” Witt said of the plate appearances in front of him.

Then it was Witt’s job to do the big thing.

Now hitting a Majors-best .349 with an OPS of exactly 1.000, Witt roped an elevated fastball into right field for his 33rd double of the season.

“That kid is special,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “He's special. The way he conducts himself, the way he plays the game is a joy from our dugout. I hate it, but I love it.”

The Royals immediately tacked on with Pasquantino’s two-run homer, the first baseman’s sixth in his past eight games. During his 11-game hit streak, Pasquantino is hitting .362 with 17 RBIs. Ragans pitched a big shutdown inning in the fifth and got into the seventh before Lucas Erceg fired 1 2/3 scoreless innings.

Witt calls Pasquantino the hottest hitter in the league right now. There’s at least two competing for that title, and they’re hitting back-to-back in the Royals’ lineup.

“It’s an exceptional threat,” Quatraro said. “You got a righty and lefty who are putting up really good at-bats. The opposing team knows they’ve got to pitch to them back to back. That’s a gauntlet to go through, and you’re not going to discount Salvy in there, either. Those three guys are a rock for us.”