V¨¢zquez sparks rally with 'on the money' throw, clutch hit
Do-Hyoung Park
@dohyoungparkKANSAS CITY -- A very determined Christian Vázquez spent his offseason working hard to put behind him the bitter taste of going completely unused in the postseason -- and he showed up at Spring Training boasting about having ¡°built an engine.¡±
He¡¯s now hitting the gas pedal.
Following a stellar defensive showing this spring, V¨¢zquez took full advantage of his first regular-season opportunity of 2024, playing into the game¡¯s pivotal moments with both his arm and his bat to make a significant impact in the turning of the momentum in the Twins¡¯ 5-1, come-from-behind victory over the Royals at Kauffman Stadium on Saturday.
¡°I know the player I am,¡± V¨¢zquez said. ¡°I have a lot of experience under the belt. I'm happy to be myself again.¡±
Coupled with a resurgent Byron Buxton driving in three runs with a pair of RBI doubles, the Twins plated all five of their runs in the game¡¯s final two innings to claim their first series victory of the regular season, with a chance to go for a sweep behind Bailey Ober on Sunday.
Before all that, the Twins had squandered their most promising opportunity of the game in the seventh, when they loaded the bases while down 1-0, but V¨¢zquez grounded into an inning-ending double play to send the game into the hands of Kansas City¡¯s high-leverage relievers.
But he got his chance at redemption.
¡°He had just grounded into a double play, so to be able to embrace that and come back out defensively and watch what you just did, that shows his resilience [and] the player he is,¡± Buxton said.
First came V¨¢zquez¡¯s arm.
The Twins had tied the game, 1-1, in the top of the eighth on an RBI double by Buxton when Bobby Witt Jr. drew a one-out walk in the bottom of the frame and took off for second. V¨¢zquez made a lightning-quick exchange as he zipped a throw to second, where a flashy tag by Carlos Correa nabbed the 49-base stealer from a year ago and quashed any potential Royals rally.
V¨¢zquez insists he didn¡¯t put any special work into his throwing this offseason. It¡¯s just that he worked on speed and his core as he aimed to gain strength and agility in his overall skillset -- and this is what the results could look like.
"I put it on the money. That's it,¡± V¨¢zquez said with a grin.
¡°The cannon is back there,¡± Joe Ryan said.
In fact, V¨¢zquez posted a pop time of 1.84 seconds on that play -- essentially a measure of how long the ball took to get from his mitt to second base -- which tied for his second-quickest mark of the Statcast era (since 2015). All four of his quickest times have come since last June 21.
¡°He¡¯s a very intelligent ballplayer, and he¡¯s perfecting things, still, at this point in his life and his career,¡± manager Rocco Baldelli said. ¡°He¡¯s kept himself in great shape, he came in this Spring Training in a great spot, and he¡¯s still thinking about and working on things like getting rid of the ball quickly, and his footwork.¡±
Then, came the bat.
In the top of the ninth, the Twins set V¨¢zquez up with a hit batter and a walk to start the inning, leaving the veteran in position to rope the RBI, go-ahead single into left field off Royals left-hander Will Smith to prime Minnesota¡¯s four-run frame -- again, punctuated by a two-run double by the healthy and energetic Buxton.
V¨¢zquez was motivated plenty by the .598 OPS he posted in 102 games last season, the first of a three-year, $30 million contract in which he maintained that he knew he wasn¡¯t playing up to his true capabilities.
Though he handled it extremely professionally in the moment by all accounts, the playoff snubs certainly stung, too -- and that¡¯s why he showed up this spring looking (and moving) this way.
¡°He was moving unbelievably,¡± Baldelli said. ¡°Like, better than at any point previously that I had seen him.¡±
It was certainly significant to him to make this kind of impression in his ¡®24 debut.
¡°My body is in better shape,¡± V¨¢zquez said. ¡°I worked in my offseason for that. Prepared myself to get more mobility, more athletic than last year. It was a hard offseason last year when I signed here, and it was a short offseason. It was a better offseason this year, and it was amazing to prepare my body to be at a high level.¡±