KC Royals Game Recap: Bullpen, Home Runs, and Career First

Spoiler alert, Moose takes the team lead back in a little bit.

Even with Salvy’s homer, the Royals were not back in the game just yet. Brad Miller took Travis Wood deep in the sixth inning to extend the Rays lead over the Royals. The 6-3 lead regained the momentum for Tampa once again and the Royals were in desperate need of runs.

Not to make fans worry, the Royals responded in the seventh with two runs courtesy of a Mike Moustakas and Eric Hosmer that trimmed the lead down to one run. But the seventh inning rally came to an end when Hosmer was picked off of first base and the Royals were left once again just short of catching up with the Rays.

The game felt like a horrible battle of tug of war where the Royals would get so close to tying the game; just to fall short. With every loss before the trade deadline, it increases the Royals chances to sell their core players. So the Royals knew this game was crucial if they are going to stick around for the entire season.

So the Royals decided to turn on the jets. Alex Gordon drove in Salvador Perez in the 8th inning to finally tie the game and complete the comeback that had been going on all night. But the Royals were looking for more than to just tie the game. The Royals took it into extra’s and Jake Junis, in his first game since being called up from AAA, pitched a scoreless 11th to give the Royals a chance on offense to take the lead.

Mike Moustakas sent a baseball deep into the right-center seats in the 12th inning that gave the Royals their first lead of the ballgame. After trailing 4-0, and 5-1, it was the Royals biggest comeback of the season and their first back to back wins since April 15 and 16.

Kelvin Herrera came in to pitch the 12th and recorded his 5th save of the season. This win felt like a huge game for the team to regain their confidence and their bats. The Royals are finally clicking on offense and can win the series with just one win in the next two games.

If you are a Royals fan, you have to be ecstatic with this comeback. The Royals looked like the team of old and finally played to their potential. This series in Tampa has shown what the Royals can play like when they are hot, and it is good some good baseball. The past two games have been exciting, so don’t be surprised if a long winning streak is in their near future.