KANSAS CITY ¨C In a span of two-plus innings Tuesday night, Freddy Fermin scored the tying run, caught two shutout innings, made a run-saving pickoff throw at third base and hit the winning knock in the Royals¡¯ 4-3 walk-off win over the Rockies in 11 innings at Kauffman Stadium.
And he didn¡¯t even enter until the ninth inning.
¡°That¡¯s a lot in two innings,¡± manager Matt Quatraro said. ¡°... Everybody loves Freddy. And for him to come through there twice in two innings is huge for him and for us.¡±
A quick and tidy game highlighted by starter Kris Bubic¡¯s seven shutout innings and Drew Waters¡¯ 408-foot home run went off the rails in the ninth inning. Trying to protect a 2-0 lead, Royals closer Carlos Est¨¦vez walked the bases loaded with two outs and needed one more strike against Rockies catcher Jacob Stallings when Stallings lined a slider into left field for a bases-clearing double.
Thus began the chaos of late-night baseball ¨C and the heroics of Fermin. He entered the game as a pinch-runner in the ninth when Salvador Perez blooped a single into right field. Fermin hustled to third on Maikel Garcia¡¯s double and scored the tying run on Michael Massey¡¯s sacrifice fly.
¡°That¡¯s what good teams do,¡± said Est¨¦vez, who threw two big innings in Sunday¡¯s win over the Tigers. ¡°Hey, one day you can be the hero. And the next day, we are going to back you up. And that¡¯s the way I saw it. I've always been talking about the fight with these guys, it¡¯s just amazing. I love to see that in the ninth inning, late in the game. ¡
¡°They had my back right there in a big way.¡±
Neither team scored in the 10th inning, even with a runner beginning each frame on second base. With runners on second and third and one out in the top of the 10th, Royals reliever John Schreiber threw an 0-1 sweeper down and away to right-handed hitter Sean Bouchard.
Fermin snapped an 81.9 mph throw to Garcia at third base to pick off Moniak.
¡°Not even close, really,¡± Quatraro said. ¡°I don¡¯t even know how Maikel caught it, to be honest. Freddy threw that so hard. ¡ He¡¯s going in front of the hitter, so he¡¯s got to clear the lane. Maikel can easily get blocked by the hitter and the runner. And then as he¡¯s moving, catching a ball thrown that hard on the move and trying to apply the tag is all pretty tricky.¡±
It¡¯s a play Fermin has worked on constantly with bench coach/catching coach Paul Hoover. When Garcia threw up the sign to make the throw, Fermin knew he had to try.
¡°I have been practicing that play. Why not make it right there?¡± Fermin said. ¡°I just pay attention and trust my infield.¡±
That saved one run, and Schreiber worked around another walk to get the Royals out of the frame. When they didn¡¯t score in the bottom of the 10th, Fermin guided Daniel Lynch IV through the top of the 11th, working around the designated runner and a leadoff walk.
In the bottom of the 11th, the Rockies intentionally walked Bobby Witt Jr. and Vinnie Pasquantino to face Fermin.
The bases were loaded and the fans who had stuck around Tuesday night were on their feet. Perez, whose spot Fermin was now hitting in, hung over the dugout railing, clapped his hands and shouted encouragement at Fermin.
It had not been a pretty ending to a game the Royals could have won 30 minutes earlier. K.C. had used its entire bench; Michael Wacha had spikes on in case the Royals needed another pinch-runner. But a win is a win, no matter who you beat or how, and Fermin had the chance to get the homestand off on the right note ¨C and end it right there in the 11th.
¡°I get a little nervous, but just stay with [the] plan,¡± Fermin said.
The Royals¡¯ backup catcher lined a two-strike single into center field. It was his third career walk-off RBI. He was mobbed by his teammates at first base and splashed with the QuikTrip water cooler.
Well-worth the two innings of play.
¡°You never know when you¡¯re going to play,¡± Fermin said. ¡°When you hear, ¡®Freddy,¡¯ you got to be ready. And I try to be. To have the confidence of my team and my teammates, it means a lot. ¡®Team¡¯ ¨C it doesn¡¯t mean one person. Everybody has to be together to create the confidence, and then things like that happen at the end of the game. I¡¯m very excited about that. Wow. That was incredible.¡±