KANSAS CITY -- Perched on the top step of the Royals’ dugout at Kauffman Stadium, watching his team close out a back-and-forth 6-5 win over the Twins on Thursday night, manager Mike Matheny described a different feeling than most have in one-run games.
“It’s amazing how you can feel in these close games, you feel at home,” Matheny said. “I know that sounds weird, but we’ve been in so many of these already. I believe that’s a good thing.”
Matheny trusted his offense to come through and the back end of his bullpen to get the job done, and that’s exactly what happened to give the Royals a fourth consecutive win and their ninth one-run victory in the opener of a four-game set.
Here’s how they swung the momentum in their favor:
1) Salvy’s swings
Last weekend in Minneapolis, Salvador Perez hit a curveball from Twins starter J.A. Happ over the left-field wall at Target Field. Perez remembered this well when he came to the plate in the first inning against Happ, who started again on Thursday. And Happ remembered it, too, instead opting to attack Perez with an elevated fastball on the outside part of the zone with the first pitch.
Perez was thinking the same thing.
“We had video, so I was thinking be aggressive," Perez said. "He pitched like that to Whit [Merrifield] and Carlos Santana, the first two hitters, and they fouled it away. I was ready.”
Perez crushed it a Statcast-projected 456 feet to left-center field for his first homer of the night. It tied the game, 1-1, and set in motion the back-and-forth action throughout the game.
“The ball is seemingly up and away, a pitch most people do not want to even attempt to attack and he drives it out,” Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said. “Frankly, I don’t know what you’re going to do about that particular pitch. That’s just a talented guy on the other side putting a good swing on the ball.”
In the fifth, with the score tied 4-4 after Minnesota came back against Royals starter Kris Bubic, who allowed four runs (three earned) in 4 1/3 innings, Happ attacked Perez with another fastball in a similar spot. That one was gone, too.
This time, it landed in Kansas City’s bullpen for the lead and Perez’s fourth homer in a span of six at-bats over the past two games. He became the fourth Royals hitter to belt multiple homers in consecutive games, joining Mike Sweeney (May 1-3, 2005), Darrell Porter (Sept. 7-8, 1977) and Ed Kirkpatrick (Sept. 28-30, 1969).
“This guy continues to amaze us,” Matheny said. “When we need something, he’s there.”
2) Dyson’s speed
Perez’s second homer gave the Royals a 5-4 lead, but reliever Jakob Junis gave up a tying homer to Josh Donaldson -- his second of the night -- in the top of the seventh.
In the bottom of the frame, Jarrod Dyson showed what speed can do.
Carlos Santana drew a leadoff walk against Minnesota reliever Hansel Robles, and Matheny inserted Dyson as a pinch-runner. With Perez at the plate, Dyson broke for second base for his fourth steal of the season. Perez popped out to first base, but Andrew Benintendi drove a ball to deep center field. Dyson tagged up, but as soon as he saw Twins center fielder Gilberto Celestino drop the ball, Dyson broke for third.
Benintendi rounded first base and looked like he might take second, so Celestino fired the ball toward first base. That’s when Dyson broke for home. He didn’t even have to slide; by the time first baseman Miguel Sanó realized Dyson was on his way home and fielded the ball, it was too late.
“When he steps on the field, and he’s on the base anywhere, it’s going to be pressure,” Matheny said. “To us, if we can just keep being that club, where we can apply pressure and make them make a play, and be ready to react when it doesn’t happen.”
3) Barlow clutch
With the one-run lead, Matheny turned to Scott Barlow for the top of the eighth, the Royals’ most reliable pitcher no matter the situation. In 29 innings this year, Barlow has a 1.86 ERA and 43 strikeouts. Of the team’s 54 games this season, he’s pitched in 26. When that bullpen phone rings, he knows there’s a good chance it’s for him.
“Every time the phone rings down there, my heart is pounding,” Barlow said. “I’m just expecting it to be my name. Just have that mindset every time the phone rings, it’s you. So that way you’re never caught off guard.”
Barlow struck out two and got a ground ball in the eighth with ease, and the Royals kept him in for the ninth and the six-out save. With one out in the ninth, Barlow walked Kyle Garlick and then faced Donaldson, who had done the most damage all night. After a fastball away for a ball, Barlow threw another in a similar spot, and Donaldson hit it hard up the middle. Merrifield was there, though, to turn the double play, end the game and give Barlow his second six-out save of the season.
“This guy deserves a lot of recognition for the stuff he’s pitched out of and the way he comes in every single time and gets us big outs,” Matheny said. “In the big part of their order, too.”