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Royals Rally Past Yankees to Level AL Division Series

Salvador Perez ignited a four-run surge in the fourth inning with a solo home run, propelling the Kansas City Royals to a 4-2 victory over the New York Yankees on Monday evening. This win leveled the AL Division Series at one game each. After a shaky performance by Cole Ragans who held on for four innings, the Royals’ relief squad successfully kept the Yankees at bay. Contributing to the team’s impressive rally, Tommy Pham, Garrett Hampson, and Maikel Garcia each delivered vital run-scoring singles.

Shuffling the Batting Order Pays Off

Relocated from the ninth to the first spot in the Royals’ lineup, Garcia made a significant impact with four hits. The best-of-five playoff series will move to Kansas City for game three on Wednesday night, marking the Royals’ first postseason home game since their 2015 World Series triumph.

“It’s essentially a whole new series when we hit the K,” said Ragans, referring to Kansas City’s home ground, Kauffman Stadium.

Yankees Struggle to Capitalize

New York’s power hitter, Aaron Judge, managed an infield single in his three plate appearances, bringing his series total to 1 for 7 with four strikeouts. Bobby Witt Jr., another Royals’ standout expected to fall just behind Judge in AL MVP voting, had a similarly challenging night, going 0 for 5. This leaves him 0 for 10 in the series.

Relievers Stand Tall

In a historical first, since the Division Series’ inception in 1995, all four Division Series contests are tied 1-1 after the opening games. Winning pitcher Angel Zerpa and John Schreiber each followed with a hitless inning before Kris Bubic threw two scoreless innings. Lucas Erceg secured his third save of the postseason in the ninth inning, despite conceding a home run to Jazz Chisholm Jr. and a two-out single to Jon Berti.

Perez’s Experience Shines

Perez, the lone survivor from the Royals’ 2015 championship team, leveled the scores by launching a 2-0 slider into the left-field stands. The veteran, a nine-time All-Star, boasts an impressive record against Carlos Rodón, the Yankees’ pitcher, having hit 12 for 26 (.462) with three home runs when Rodón pitched for the Chicago White Sox.

Upcoming Matchup

Looking forward to game three, the Yankees will hand the ball to Clarke Schmidt (5-5, 2.85 ERA), making his first postseason start. In contrast, the Royals are slated to start Seth Lugo (16-9, 3.00), who shut out the Yankees over seven innings in a 5-0 victory earlier this season.

With the series evenly poised at one game each, both teams will be looking to seize the advantage in the next showdown at Kauffman Stadium.