KANSAS CITY – It was a heads-up play in the worst kind of way. But the Royals were more than happy to see it bounce in their favor.
Down one run in the bottom of the ninth inning Tuesday night, Drew Waters hit a ball sky-high to White Sox second baseman Chase Meidroth, a routine popup on most nights in most situations.
Not on Tuesday.
The ball nicked Meidroth’s glove, then hit his head, then rolled into right field, where Michael A. Taylor picked it up and overthrew second base for Mark Canha to slide in safely. Waters was safe at first, and the Royals felt the energy shift their way.
Less than 10 minutes later, they were celebrating a 4-3 walk-off victory over the White Sox at Kauffman Stadium after Bobby Witt Jr.’s single to deep center field.
It handed Kansas City its fourth consecutive win and 13th in its last 15 games.
“A win is a win, especially in the big leagues,” Royals captain Salvador Perez said.
The highlight of this game will feature Meidroth’s error and the stunned look on his face afterward. The shot of Maikel Garcia gleefully bouncing up and down in the dugout is pretty good, too. But so much happened around that one play for the Royals to be able to win that game, and it all happened fast.
Canha, pinch-hitting for Cavan Biggio, worked a leadoff walk to set up the inning against lefty reliever Cam Booser.
“The whole complexion of that inning changes if you get one out and nobody on,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “But as soon as you get somebody on, you start to feel pretty good.”
“I knew once Mark walked and had a good [plate appearance], I knew we were going to win that game,” Jonathan India added. “The way we’re going – we’re just confident right now.”
Freddy Fermin laid down his second bunt single of the game to load the bases. Momentum swung slightly back toward the White Sox when Kyle Isbel popped up in foul territory – this one caught, no problem, by third baseman Josh Rojas.
India, frustrated and accountable postgame with the error he made back in the sixth that led to what was the go-ahead run at the time, lined a hard-hit single up the middle to tie the game. It might have been the walk-off hit had shortstop Jacob Amaya not made an incredible diving stop near second base.
“I knew the middle was open because they played me pull, and I can’t believe he actually got to that ball,” India said.
Then Witt came to the plate with one out, and everyone had a feeling what was going to happen.
“Bob came to the plate, and you kind of knew the game was over,” said Isbel, whose homer in the sixth put the Royals on the board.
Witt got a fastball up in the zone from Booser and drove it to the straightaway center field, where Luis Robert Jr. was running back but eventually let it drop knowing it was the game-winner either way.
“Everyone else did their job, so I needed to do my part,” Witt said. “Looking for a pitch in the zone and get it in the air. And just drive someone in.
“It’s one of those games where you play to the final out. Go up there and take it one pitch at a time. That’s kind of what we did. And then just one after another, pass the baton.”
Tuesday’s game was more about White Sox (10-26) and the implosion that occurred in the ninth inning. But good teams find a way to win those types of games, and the Royals are playing winning baseball right now at 21-16.
“Every day we go to the field, we’re planning on winning,” Witt said. “That’s our mentality. That’s our mindset.”
They overcame a game in which their offense was limited against White Sox starter Sean Burke. They got through a game in which starter Seth Lugo didn’t have “the greatest feel for my pitches tonight,” he said, but still pitched 6 2/3 innings and only allowed two runs (one earned).
And the Royals stayed in it, knowing that a break might be coming. No one foresaw the ball bouncing off Meidroth’s head as that break, but the Royals quickly made it count.
“Getting the ball in play is all you can do,” Quatraro said. “They were cruising there. [Burke] had a really low pitch count, so we had been putting the ball in play, but we needed to capitalize on an opportunity, and we were able to do that.”