Michael Wacha, Vinnie Pasquantino bring Royals back to .500 in win vs. Nationals
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- Michael Wacha allowed two runs in 5⅔ innings for his sixth solid start
- Vinnie Pasquantino drove in five RBIs, including a three-run home run
- Royals improved to 60-60 and maintained Wild Card hopes with bullpen support
Just beyond the left-field wall at Kauffman Stadium sits a State Farm sign inscribed with its iconic catchphrase: “Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.”
The insurance company is known to serve millions nationally. However, the Royals won’t be in the market for more coverage. They are quite comfortable with their in-house insurance provider this season.
His name is Michael Wacha.
Wacha spun another pitching gem Tuesday night against the Washington Nationals. He surrendered two runs in 5 ⅔ innings as the Royals earned an 8-5 victory at home.
The Royals feel comfortable when Wacha is on the mound. Tuesday’s effort was the latest example of his veteran presence. He turned in his sixth consecutive start allowing two runs or fewer.
Wacha is a steady hand in the Royals’ rotation. He has held together the starting unit amid injuries to Cole Ragans, Kris Bubic and Michael Lorenzen. And he has done it behind strong peripheral numbers.
This season, Wacha has held opponents to a .216 average his first two times through a batting order. He excelled in that area once again Tuesday night. The Nationals registered a run on five hits and struck out three times during that span.
“I wouldn’t say I made too many adjustments,” Wacha said of his recent starts. “You know, just felt like (I’m) executing well and feel like the mix has been really good. Just trying to keep building off each one of these starts and looking forward to the next one.”
Washington found success against Wacha a third time through. In the sixth inning, CJ Abrams hit a one-out triple and later scored after Bobby Witt Jr. dropped a pop-up in shallow center. The Nationals also drew two walks to knock Wacha out of the game.
While he didn’t produce a quality start, Wacha gave the Royals a chance to build an early lead and ultimately sustain it.
“There’s some good things and there’s some stuff that I’ve got to clean up for sure,” Wacha said. “But (I) felt like we got in a good rhythm there. You know, we were having some quick innings, getting back in the dugout quick and letting our offense do our thing out there.”
Vinnie Pasquantino led the offensive charge. He finished 2-for-3 with five RBIs, including a three-run homer in the third inning. Pasquantino drove a 93.1 mph fastball from Nationals left-handed pitcher Mitchell Parker 356 feet into the right-field bleachers.
It was his fifth home run against left-handers this season.
“There have been a lot of adjustments made by me over the past week or so, just trying to figure some things out,” Pasquantino said. “I mean, it’s no secret I haven’t been very good since the All-Star break. It’s the ebbs and flows of this game. You know, I have a night like last night, tough night, but we win so it doesn’t matter. And then tonight, I’m able to help out more for a victory.”
The Royals picked up Wacha across the board. After Wacha surrendered both runs in the middle innings, Randal Grichuk and Jonathan India quickly extended the lead again. Grichuk hit an RBI double while India followed with a two-run homer in the sixth.
From there, the Royals held serve with their bullpen. KC relievers Sam Long, John Schreiber, Taylor Clarke and Lucas Erceg shut the door as the club improved to 60-60 overall.
“Sammy’s pitched a lot of big innings,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said of Long’s hold in the sixth inning. “You know, going to back to last year, he has been in a lot of big spots. We feel good with him against righties, too. But that was a huge spot in the game and that’s the go-ahead run at the plate.”
The Nationals dropped to 47-72. Abrams had two hits and an RBI while All-Star outfielder James Wood added an RBI double from the leadoff spot.
The Royals will go for the series sweep Wednesday afternoon as they look to stay in American League Wild Card contention.
Vinnie Pasquantino lights up scoreboard
Pasquantino had a good night at the office. He posted his third game this season with five or more RBIs to propel the Royals offense.
Each at-bat resulted in loud contact.
In the first inning, Pasquantino drove in Maikel Garcia with a sacrifice fly. The Royals manufactured the run thanks to smart baserunning from Garcia. He advanced to third base on Witt’s groundout to the pitcher’s mound.
Later, Pasquantino hit his 21st home run and followed that with an RBI double off the right-field wall in the seventh inning.
“I’ve hit some pretty far balls foul in my lifetime,” Pasquantino said. “And you know, since coming up to the big leagues, a lot of times it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a bad swing, but it shows your contact point isn’t necessarily where you want it. So you’ve got to figure out a way to turn a little bit tighter, keep the swing a little shorter and work through the baseball more.”
Pasquantino is now tied with Salvador Perez for most home runs on the team and leads the Royals with 76 RBIs this season.
What’s next: The Royals conclude their midweek series with the Nationals on Wednesday afternoon. KC ace Seth Lugo (8-6, 3.46 ERA) will start opposite right-hander Jake Irvin (8-7, 4.90 ERA) at Kauffman Stadium. First pitch is set for 1:10 p.m. Central.
This story was originally published August 12, 2025 at 9:30 PM with the headline "Michael Wacha, Vinnie Pasquantino bring Royals back to .500 in win vs. Nationals."
