The Kansas City Royals no longer resemble the bumbling squad that sat 24 games under .500 in mid-August.
The Royals are now the hottest team in the majors. They will look to record their 13th victory in 14 games when they close a three-game series against the host Cleveland Guardians on Sunday afternoon.
Kansas City recorded 3-0 and 8-3 victories in the first two games of the series. The Royals suddenly are on the verge of entering the jam-packed American League wild-card race.
“There’s just something different every day,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro told reporters after Saturday’s game. “When guys are involved and they are all doing something that makes for a good atmosphere.”
Kansas City has won by multiple runs 11 times during the torrid stretch. Two weeks ago, the Royals looked like a team playing out the season. Now they are a team nobody wants to face despite sitting 13 games below .500.
“There is a lot of time yet,” Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said of the Royals. “They are a very good team. Records are not indicative of how good a team is … They have a really good lineup that can match up with you off the bench. They play really good baseball and we always seem to get their best.”
Cleveland holds the third wild-card spot despite having a .500 (68-68) record. Six teams stand between the Guardians and Royals, who are 6 1/2 games behind Cleveland.
Longtime Kansas City star catcher Salvador Perez, the MVP of the 2015 World Series, insisted his team won’t be backing down.
“We’re always going to fight for the last out,” Perez said. “We’re always going to compete and make adjustments.”
On Saturday, Josh Rojas homered and matched his career-best total of four RBIs to lead the charge.
“It feels like there’s always one guy in the lineup that’s scorching hot and everybody else is trying to find it,” Rojas said. “I feel like it’s one of those times where everybody is feeling good at the same time.”
The Guardians entered the series with a seven-game winning streak that matched their season best.
But they managed just six singles in Friday’s setback and blew an early 2-0 lead on Saturday. Angel Martinez hit a two-run homer and drove in all three Cleveland runs.
Cleveland’s Jo Adell is 1-for-16 over the past four games.
Stellar left-hander Parker Messick (10-8, 2.50 ERA) takes the mound Sunday looking to prevent the Guardians from being swept.
Messick defeated the Los Angeles Angels in his last start when he gave up one run and three hits over six innings. Cleveland notched a 4-2 victory in the Monday contest.
He matched his career-high of 10 strikeouts in a no-decision against the San Francisco Giants five days earlier. Messick gave up one run and six hits over 6 2/3 innings in a 1-0 loss.
Messick, 25, will be facing the Royals for the first time.
Right-hander Seth Lugo (6-7, 4.61) will look for his third straight winning decision for the Royals.
Lugo beat the Chicago Cubs on Aug. 8 and then gave up five runs each in back-to-back no-decisions vs. the Angels and Athletics. He put forth a better effort Tuesday when he allowed one run and six hits over five innings in a 5-3 win over the Toronto Blue Jays.
Lugo, 36, lost to the Guardians on May 7 when he gave up four runs and seven hits over four innings. Overall, he is 2-1 with a 3.90 ERA in six career appearances (five starts) against Cleveland.
Steven Kwan (4-for-13) and Nathaniel Lowe (1-for-7) each have homered off Lugo.
–Field Level Media
