KANSAS CITY -- Hoping to avoid another gut-punch loss during a week in which they can’t afford any more, who else would the Royals turn to other than their two star, franchise-altering players?
Salvador Perez smashed a game-tying home run in the seventh inning Thursday night.
Bobby Witt Jr. followed with a go-ahead blast in the eighth.
And the Royals claimed the finale of their series against the Angels with a 4-3 win at Kauffman Stadium, snapping a three-game losing skid and narrowing the gap in their postseason push.
With 22 games to go, Kansas City (71-69) is two games out of a playoff spot.
The Royals trail the Mariners (73-67) for the third American League Wild Card spot and trail the Rangers (72-69) as the first team out of a playoff spot by a half-game. Both Seattle and Texas were off Thursday. Meanwhile, the Rays (71-69) beat the Guardians on Thursday for their seventh straight victory and are tied with the Royals at two games back.
It’s setting up to be a chaotic final push this month, with every game more important than the last. That’s why Thursday’s comeback win was so massive for the Royals.
“Any win is important,” Perez said. “We know where we want to go. We’ve got [22] games … left. We just need to come in here, try to prepare ourselves, play hard and try to win as many games. … I think all these guys, they want to go back to the playoffs. We’ve prepared ourselves, all season, Spring Training, just to be back in the playoffs.”
That’s all 2025 has been about, despite all the adversity the Royals have faced, including an inconsistent offense and a rotation that dealt with a whole rash of injuries, the latest seeing Seth Lugo hit the 15-day injured list Thursday, retroactive to Monday, with a low back strain.
Just when it seems like it’s over, the Royals declare it’s not. That’s how it felt watching Perez’s ball fly out to left-center field, coming through when the Royals needed it most following two disappointing losses earlier this series and a rough start Thursday. They were trailing 3-0 before taking an at-bat when Luis Rengifo hit a three-run homer during a 34-pitch first inning for starter Noah Cameron, who was making his first start since Aug. 25.
Cameron settled down, though, and didn’t allow another run through five innings.
The bullpen was lights-out, including two scoreless innings from Jonathan Bowlan. And the Royals crept their way back into the game, starting with Adam Frazier’s solo homer in the second -- his 1,000th career hit -- and Vinnie Pasquantino’s solo shot in the fourth.
“Clearly, we needed the win,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “For the guys to battle all the way back, that was really impressive.”
Witt talks all the time about wanting to be in the moments that matter most, and another one found him on Thursday after Perez tied the game with his 297th career home run. A day after Witt took on all the blame in Wednesday’s loss due to his misplay in the eighth and a few at-bats he wanted back, he turned on an inside fastball from Angels reliever Ryan Zeferjahn for his 21st home run of the season and the lead.
“I was already thinking that it had been a few days without pitching, and I was like, ‘Get me in this game,’” closer Carlos Estévez said after notching his MLB-leading 37th save of the game. “I think Bobby heard me.”
It was Witt’s second tie-breaking home run in the past week, following his two-run homer on Saturday against the Tigers -- the only two wins the Royals have on this homestand so far.
“By the time I got home, it was onto the next,” Witt said, referencing the misplay Wednesday. “That’s what so great about this game. You’ve got to flush it and move on, get to the next day and be ready for whenever the opportunity comes.”
Witt said he’s gotten better at not holding onto those bad moments and getting ready for the next opportunity, because he understands there will be another chance. There will be a lot of those over Witt’s career; there’s already been plenty so far.
And the Royals will always want their shortstop up in those moments. Thursday showed why.
“He didn’t have his best game yesterday, but that’s why we play every day, right?” Quatraro said. “And Bobby, over the long haul, is going to do a lot more good than not. He beat himself up yesterday after the game, and that’s because he cares so much. And the fact that he’s back out there and doesn’t hang his head, that’s what makes him as good as he is.”