Cain takes Royal walk down memory lane

This story was excerpted from Anne Rogers’ Royals Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

KANSAS CITY -- Do you ever pull up highlights from the Royals’ 2014 and ‘15 seasons and watch videos of the great memories from those winning teams?

So does Lorenzo Cain.

“It was electric, playing in this stadium in front of packed houses every night. That’s when you know you’re doing something special,” Cain said Saturday before his emotional retirement ceremony. “People show up, and it’s loud every night. I definitely miss that feeling, and I think about it all the time. I watch videos and highlights from it all the time, and it gives me goosebumps thinking about it right now.”

So, what is Cain’s go-to highlight when he thinks back on that time? He enjoys all of them. But the 2014 American League Wild Card game was “by far” the best game he said he’s ever played in. You remember: the Royals trailed the A's by four runs entering the eighth inning, only to come back to tie the game and then win it in the 12th inning on Salvador Perez’s walk-off single down the third-base line, past a diving Josh Donaldson.

“After that home run against [Yordano] Ventura, it took the life out of us a little bit, but then we kind of realized that, ‘Hey, we can’t forget who we are, and [we need] to find a way to bounce back,'" Cain said. "And that’s what we did. We never gave up and found a way to come back and win that game. Those are the kind of things that made that team so great, special and memorable.”

That’s what the Royals did: They fought back when they were down. Cain was part of that, with an unparalleled clutch gene.

“I mean, we were the comeback kids,” Cain said. “We felt like we were never out of a game, no matter what the situation was. We built that motto of just keeping the line moving and trying not to do too much. Simply putting the ball in play and putting pressure on the other team.”

The Royals won back-to-back AL pennants and went to the World Series in 2014 and ‘15. Cain hit .533 (8-for-15) with two doubles, two walks and five runs scored during the 2014 AL Championship Series to earn MVP honors.

In 2015, Cain started all 16 postseason games in center field, hitting .258 with two doubles, a homer, 11 RBIs and 11 runs scored. His bases-clearing double in the 12th inning in Game 5 of the World Series iced the Royals’ victory. Cain earned his first All-Star nod in 2015 and finished third in AL MVP voting.

The Royals had a special group with Cain, Perez, Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, Alex Gordon and others. They recognized it, too -- perhaps long before any fans.

“I think it was years before,” Cain said. “... I remember playing with some of those guys in the Minor Leagues, and we were destroying teams. I mean, absolutely crushing teams.

“Then and there, I knew this group was special. We slowly -- with Hosmer and Moustakas -- kept getting called up to the big leagues, then I got my shot. And I was just trying to keep up with those guys. That’s when I felt like I knew that we were special.”