Kansas City Royals: Eric Hosmer walk-off homer downs Rockies

The Kansas City Royals claimed one of their most thrilling victories of the season on Wednesday night. Eric Hosmer hit a three-run homer off former Royals closer Greg Holland to earn a walk-off win.

Greg Holland‘s first time pitching against the Kansas City Royals as a member of an opposing team did not go the way he would have wanted.

It went exactly the way Eric Hosmer would have wanted.

With two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, Hosmer faced his former teammate with a pair of runners on base and a 4-3 loss to the Colorado Rockies staring him in the face. A mighty rip on a 1-1 pitch flipped the script and sent Hosmer’s current teammates home with a 6-4 victory.

By the time his three-run homer curled around the right-field foul pole, Hosmer had barely moved from the batter’s box. Not known as the show-boating type (particularly against a former teammate), even his vantage point gave little indication whether his mammoth blast would wind up a long strike or his first-ever walk-off homer.

Thankfully for the Kansas City Royals, it was the latter.

Kansas City Royals

Every win is a big one at this point in the season. With Cleveland and Minnesota having already lost on Wednesday, a loss would have felt like a missed opportunity.

Add in that Hosmer, say, striking out to end the game would have meant the team scored just three runs on 14 hits. That’s a loss that stings.

It’s the kind of defeat that can carry over into the next game or two. Likewise, wins like the one that came on Wednesday are certainly worth a momentum boost.

It’s worth noting that Holland, despite leading the National League in saves, has been awful lately. He has allowed 12 runs over five innings in has last six appearances, including just one save.

Holland opened the ninth inning with an inexcusable walk of Alex Gordon. Consecutive hard-hit outs by Whit Merrifield, who finished 4 for 5, and Lorenzo Cain gave a glimpse of what was to come. Melky Cabrera, who seems like a deadline steal at this point, extended the game with an opposite-field single.

The rest, as they say, is history.

It’s hard to believe Hosmer had not hit a walk-off homer until Wednesday night. Although, according to ESPN Stats and Info, it was hit eighth career walk-off hit.

The dinger capped an outstanding game for the All-Star first baseman. Hosmer finished 3 for 4 with a walk. He drove in four runs with the first one coming on a seventh-inning single that plated Merrifield and pulled the Kansas City Royals within 4-3.

The victory is the third in a row for the Kansas City Royals and guarantees a series win.

Next: Where Royals Stack Up in Playoff Race

The Kansas City Royals will go for a sweep of the Rockies on Thursday afternoon. Jake Junis will face off against German Marquez with first pitch set for 2:15 p.m. Central at Kauffman Stadium.