Royals prevail, top Indians 3-0
Third-base umpire Mike Estabrook did not appear to notice. So as the umpiring crew completed its second replay review of the play, which would have cut Kansas City’s lead to one run, Moustakas saw the evidence and stomped off the field, pumping his fist as he departed. The noise at Kauffman Stadium rose as Moustakas got closer to the dugout.
“I was pretty confident that he didn’t tag up,” Moustakas said.
His teammates followed, though the umpires herded the Royals back onto the field while they sorted out the mess. Combined, the two reviews lasted four minutes and 38 seconds. That does not account for the time required for manager Ned Yost to re-emerge from his dugout and convince crew chief Dana DeMuth for a crew chief’s challenge.
The first challenge, issued by Yost, questioned a tag at first base. With one out and runners at the corners, Indians outfielder Lonnie Chisenhall hit a seed at reliever Ryan Madson, who caught the ball and made an off-line throw to first. Eric Hosmer retrieved the ball, but held it in his bare hand as he tried to make a sweeping tag on outfielder Michael Brantley with his glove.
As that duet played out, Lindor sprinted home. He had never touched third to tag up. Hosmer threw home but Lindor beat the tag by catcher Salvador Perez. The ball was routed to third, where Moustakas stepped on the bag. Estabrook signaled safe.
“I didn’t really know what was going on,” Hosmer said after the game. “But I was hoping he didn’t challenge the play at first. But when I threw the ball home, I knew Lindor was fast, but I didn’t think he’d be able to make it that fast. But Moose was all over it.”
After the first review, Moustakas harangued Estabrook about the call. The second review validated his memory and allowed the Royals to exit their final regular-season home stand with a victory.
Making his first start since July 28, Chris Young pitched five innings without allowing a hit. He was pitching a day after he learned his father had died. Young left the team to be with his family in Texas after Sunday’s game.
The pursuit of a collective no-hitter ended in the seventh when Lindor laid down a bunt single against Madson. Then came the messiness of the two replay reviews. When it was over, the crowd of 36,339 erupted. The attendance established a new franchise record at Kauffman Stadium, with 2,708,549 fans attending the 81 games.
Barring a horrific skid, the Royals will return to Kansas City on Oct. 8 to play host to Game 1 of the American League Division Series. Whether Kansas City enters the postseason as the No. 1 or the No. 2 seed will be determined this week.
Three weeks ago, with 27 games to play, the Royals held a five-game lead over the Toronto Blue Jays for the best record in the league and home-field advantage in the postseason. The Blue Jays closed the gap to zero on Saturday night. Toronto won the season series against Kansas City, so if the two finish the season with the same record, the road to the World Series would go through the Rogers Centre.
On Sunday, the Royals ensured their first 90-win season since 1989, but because Toronto executed a 5-4 walk-off victory over the Tampa Bay Rays, the Blue Jays also cracked the 90-win threshold and stayed in front.
“It’s going to be a fun ride, all the way up to the end,” outfielder Lorenzo Cain said. “They have a really good team. So I’m sure they’re going to be battling as well. So we’ll see what happens. We’ll definitely fight for home-field advantage.”
Yost has shifted tack in the last few days. With the American League Central crown resting on his club’s head, he has begun to frame outpacing the Blue Jays as a secondary endeavor.
“Home-field advantage is just a little perk,” Yost said. “We’ve accomplished our main goal: Win the division. We’d still like to get home-field advantage, just to say you have it. It’s not life or death if you don’t.”
When pressed, Yost acknowledged the Blue Jays present a different challenge at the Rogers Centre, where homers fly out at a prodigious rate.
“It’s an advantage, but once you get in the playoffs, you’ve got to win,” Yost said.
So Kansas City has an incentive to shoot for as it attempts to solve its lingering issues. Yost is still searching for his ideal lineup. He returned Alcides Escobar to the leadoff spot on Sunday. Yost acknowledged there is little statistical reasoning for using Escobar there, considering his cratering production this season.
But, Yost continued, the team won when Escobar led off. Yost admitted that most of their struggles this month stemmed from their pitching staff, which is why Young’s performance on Sunday stood out.
This story was originally published September 27, 2015 at 4:20 PM with the headline "Royals prevail, top Indians 3-0."