Nick Heath has jets for legs. And Royals manager Mike Matheny is eager to let ‘em rip
Royals outfielder Nick Heath didn’t offer statistics. No 40-yard dash or home plate-to first times. He simply provided the answer that came to mind when faced with the question:
How fast are you?
“In the back of my head, I’m the fastest player in baseball,” Heath replied during a video call before Wednesday night’s game against the Tigers.
In the next breath, he continued, “Probably not ... I’m sure there’s some people I’ve got to see, some people I’ve got to have a footrace with. Until that happens, I think I’m the fastest.”
The Royals called Heath, 26, to the majors for the first time in his career before Tuesday night’s game against Detroit at Comerica Park. Royals manager Mike Matheny seemed anxious to use the speedster, a graduate of Junction City High School in Kansas, in a crucial situation to create a scoring opportunity.
Considering Heath’s reputation — he led all of Minor League Baseball with 60 steals last season — he’ll likely find himself inserted into a game as a pinch-runner, with everyone in the ballpark aware he’s there to steal bases and force the defense to account for his speed on every pitch.
In a lot of ways, that could put as much pressure on Heath as it does the defense.
Except Heath doesn’t quite see it that way. He seems ready to embrace the challenge, assuming he gets past the jitters that come with being in the big leagues for the first time.
Heath’s first appearance almost came in the ninth inning of Tuesday night’s one-run loss to the Tigers.
Matheny planned to summon Heath as a pinch-runner if starting catcher Salvador Perez got on base with two outs. Had the Royals tied the game, the move would’ve led to super-utility man Erick Mejia’s catching debut, but that’s how much confidence Matheny has in Heath’s ability to wreak havoc.
“I was kind of split down the middle,” said Heath, a 16th-round pick out of Louisiana’s Northwestern State in 2016. “I was like, ‘Man, I can’t wait to run bases.’ Then on the other side, I was like, ‘Oh my God, I might have to run the bases!’”
The nervousness isn’t surprising, considering his first playing time as a big-leaguer could’ve had a major influence on the game’s outcome.
“The only thing that was going through my head was, ‘Please, Salvy get on base, get on base, I want to run,’” Heath said. “I want to be out there. I want to show them what I can do.
“I think it’s going to be kind of nerve-racking. But knowing that everybody in there is going to be eyes on me with the opportunity for us to have to steal a bag or score a run or do something like that, I think it’s going to give me a little bit of an edge, kind of give me a little bit of second nature and allow me to kick into that extra gear.”
That extra gear runs in Heath’s genes. His mother Kimberly (Kilpatrick) Milleson was a track star at Kansas State and ran the 100 meter hurdles in the 1988 Olympic Trials.
Added to the 40-man roster this offseason after advancing to Triple-A Omaha in 2019, Heath spent big-league camp and spring training 2.0 with the Royals’ major-league club, but he did not make the opening day roster.
The Royals placed Mike Montgomery and Foster Griffin on the injured list Tuesday and brought up right-handed pitcher Jake Newberry and Heath, choosing to add another position player instead of an additional pitcher.
“We’ve been talking about, all along, what a weapon he is,” Matheny said.
One of the Royals’ calling cards under general manager Dayton Moore has been to covet speed on the bases. During their AL pennant and World Series runs, Lorenzo Cain and Jarrod Dyson wielded their speed as weapons.
The Royals previously kept Terrance Gore, who wore jersey No. 0 (which Heath will wear now) for that same reason, and acquired speedy Billy Hamilton before the 2019 season.
Matheny, who previously managed in the National League, clearly believes in using his entire roster and has been a proponent of “putting pressure” or “perceived pressure” on a defense.
That means affecting the defense and the pitcher with speed.
“I hate ending a game, especially a one-run game, and having weapons still and bullets still in the gun,” Matheny said of his thought process Tuesday night.
“I was really looking forward to getting Nick in there. He’s going to be a force once he gets on base. It’s going to be fun to watch him. Just having that ability, there’s just not many pure base stealers in the game right now, and he’s one of them.”
This story was originally published July 29, 2020 at 6:13 PM with the headline "Nick Heath has jets for legs. And Royals manager Mike Matheny is eager to let ‘em rip."
