Bobby Witt Jr., Vinnie Pasquantino, and Salvador Perez helped bring the Royals back to the postseason for the first time in almost ten years, turning around a team that lost 106 games to one competing for a place in the American League Championship Series.
However, they fell short mainly because the trio struggled at the plate against the New York Yankees.
Witt, Pasquantino, and Perez combined to hit just 6 for 49 in their AL Division Series, failing to get crucial hits when the Royals really needed them.
This was especially clear in Game 4 on Thursday night, when Perez popped out and ended their only real rally in the sixth inning, while Pasquantino and Perez struck out in the ninth, leading to the Yankees’ 3-1 win.
“It’s tough. It’s not really what you want,” Witt said. “It feels like you let a lot of people down when you do things like this, but that’s part of the game. It’s something that will light a torch in you, and leave a bad taste in your mouth for the future.”
New York will face Cleveland or Detroit in the ALCS starting Monday night at Yankee Stadium.
“Yeah, I’ve got to be honest with you, the Royals are a damn good ballclub. That was a really tough series,” Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole said. “In terms of Witt specifically, certainly had a little bit of bad luck, hit some balls on the screws and took some — it took a lot of good pitches to keep him in check. That’s just a testament to how great of a player he is.”
Now, the Royals will start thinking about next season and what they need to do to boost an offense that struggled to score at the end of the season. Kansas City lost 6-5 to the Yankees in Game 1, then managed to score only five runs in the next three games, which contributed to their nine-game losing streak at home since September 8, including the playoffs.
“They battled their butts off, man. They gave everything they had,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “You’ve got to tip your cap; they beat us. But it wasn’t for lack of effort, wasn’t for lack of desire or any of that kind of stuff. They put it all out there.”
The sudden drop in performance from the Royals’ top hitters was surprising, especially considering what Witt, Pasquantino, and Perez achieved during the season.
Witt had a batting average of .332, winning the AL batting title, and he hit 32 home runs with a team-leading 109 RBIs. Perez contributed 27 home runs and 104 RBIs. Pasquantino was on track to join them with over 100 RBIs before he broke his thumb in an unusual play late in the season, but he healed enough to be the designated hitter in the playoffs.
On Thursday night, Witt went 1 for 4, and his only hit led to the Royals’ only run on Pasquantino’s double in the sixth inning. Although Witt was a strong contender against the Yankees’ Aaron Judge for the AL MVP, he ended the series with just 2 for 17 at the plate after having driven in both decisive runs during the Royals’ two-game sweep of Baltimore in the wild-card round.
“It’s part of baseball,” Witt said. “Sometimes you hit right at ‘em, sometimes you don’t. It’s just the game.”
Pasquantino’s double that brought in a run broke his 0-for-14 slump in the first three games of the series.
Then there was Perez, whose key plays in 2014 and 2015 helped the Royals win back-to-back AL pennants and their first World Series title in thirty years.
He had three hits against New York before Thursday night, but he flew out to start the second inning, popped out to end the fourth, and popped out again after the Royals finally scored in the sixth inning.
“You know, I tried to help my team win every day. You guys know that,” Perez said. “I missed a couple opportunities even today with Pasquantino at second base. That’s going to happen. Good things are going to happen, bad things are going to happen.”
In the ninth inning, Pasquantino and Perez both struck out before Yuli Gurriel flew out against Yankees reliever Clay Holmes, who was part of a strong New York bullpen that hasn’t allowed a run over 15 and 2/3 innings in the postseason.
