Terrence Gore scores on wild pitch, Royals rally to beat Twins 4-3 in 10 innings

Walk-off victory? More like a sprint-off triumph for the Royals on Sunday.

Terrance Gore, one of baseball’s fastest players, kicked into overdrive twice in the 10th inning to give the Royals a 4-3 triumph over the Twins.

Gore went from first to third in an errant pickoff throw, not hesitating when approaching second base.

A Royals victory seemed automatic at this point. Gore stood at third base with no outs.

But a pop fly proved too shallow to tag up, and a strikeout left Gore at third base with two outs as Lorenzo Cain stepped in.

Gore and third base coach Mike Jirschele had a brief conversation once the count to Cain reached 2-2.

“He said, ‘Look for a ball in the dirt,’” Gore said. “That’s exactly what I did.”

Pitcher Trevor May’s ball bounced in front in front of the plate, off John Ryan Murphy and off his chest protector. Not far, maybe 12 to 15 feet toward the Royals dugout.

“I saw it trickle away, I was gone,” Gore said. “All I need is a trickle.”

Gore and May dashed to the plate but there was no doubt who was winning this race. Murphy grabbed the ball on a slide and thought his best shot was an underhand toss. It wasn’t on target, and May didn’t handle it as Gore slid across the plate head first.

Eric Hosmer, a hero from the ninth inning, stood on deck and was the first to grab and hoist Gore in celebration.

“I had the best seat in the house,” Hosmer said. “That’s what’s so special about Terrance’s speed. Any ball that bounces any certain way, if you have to change direction, it’s pretty much no chance of getting him. That’s why he’s a tremendous weapon to have.”

Gore made the opening-day roster when outfielder Jarrod Dyson was placed on the disabled list after an injury early in spring training. He has appeared in games over the past two seasons, including the playoffs, mostly as a pinch-runner.

“People were wondering why we brought him on our 25-man roster, and that’s exactly why,” Royals manager Ned Yost said. “He can help you win a game late with his speed.”

Speed is Gore’s natural talent, but he has become an intelligent base-runner with superb instincts. Over his professional baseball career, which started in 2011, he has stolen 207 bases and has been caught 19 times.

Instinct kicked in on Gore’s dash to the plate.

“It was a perfect read, a perfect reaction,” Yost said. “He didn’t hesitate a second. He’s got world-class speed, but what sets that up is his anticipation. He was looking for that.”

The 10th inning started with May’s four-pitch walk to Christian Colon, who was lifted for Gore. May’s throwing error allowed Gore to take third and set up the final play. But the Twins were kicking themselves for letting the game get away in the ninth.

The Royals trailed after eight 3-1, and it appeared Twins starter Ricky Nolasco had gotten the better of his counterpart, Edinson Volquez, who delivered one of his better games in a Royals uniform.

Volquez’s change-up was particularly nasty. He stuck out 10, the most in his one-plus seasons with the Royals.

But after surrendering four singles and two runs in the sixth, Volquez was finished and turned over a 2-0 deficit. The Royals got one back on a Mike Moustakas’ solo homer — the only run and one of three hits surrendered by Nolasco in seven innings — but the Twins responded with Brian Dozier’s solo blast in the seventh.

The Royals had already posted one comeback victory in the series, the opener when they overcome a late one-run deficit to win 4-3. This one required more production.

On Sunday, closer Glen Perkins was tasked with preserving the Twins’ first victory of the season. The team entered the game 0-5 for the first time in franchise history, but it appeared they’d head into their home opener on Monday with a victory.

Perkins got one out, but Cain dropped a single to right-center. On a 0-2 pitch, Hosmer lofted a drive to left that Eddie Rosario couldn’t chase down. The ball rolled to the wall for an RBI triple.

Perkins again had a 0-2 advantage on Kendrys Morales and couldn’t put him away. Morales lifted a long sacrifice fly to right to tie the game.

“I had Hosmer 0-2, I had Morales 0-2, and I couldn’t make the pitch to get those guys out,” Perkins said. “You have to keep the ball out of play. But they put the pressure on you. That’s their thing. They don’t strike out much.

“You see what happens when they don’t strike out. They put the ball in play, and things happen. That’s why they won the World Series. They’re a good team.”

This story was originally published April 10, 2016 at 5:07 PM with the headline "Terrence Gore scores on wild pitch, Royals rally to beat Twins 4-3 in 10 innings."