On the Brink

A thrilling game that didn't go the Royals way means they now are in elimination mode.

The game was fantastic. The atmosphere was electric. The result left something to be desired. I say this so often, but there are two teams on that field, and each one of them is trying to win. Sometimes, a game is as simple as one team just does a slightly better job in their attempt. The Royals, with nine walks allowed for the first time since June 30, 2023, certainly didn’t help their cause (and I’ll get to this), but the Yankees were just one run better for the second time in three games. Now, for the first time all year, the Royals backs are up against the wall for real.

I do want to note that the crowd was everything a playoff crowd should be. They were loud. They were, at times, a little unruly. And they were very involved in the game, sometimes to the detriment of the Royals. There were points in the fourth, fifth and eighth innings that it felt like the 2014 Wild Card game from the fifth through the eighth. People almost seemed stunned to see the Royals losing at the points the Royals were losing. Sure, there was always a buzz that comes from 40,312 people being there, but some of the “Let’s go Royals!” chants felt a little forced after people had their hearts broken. But that’s the nature of the beast. It was a really fun crowd to be in, for the most part.

The walk-fest from Royals pitching didn’t start until the third when Seth Lugo walked Oswaldo Cabrera with one out and after having retired for the first seven hitters in order. He never moved off first. The next walk was of Juan Soto to lead off the fourth. He did come around to score, even after Lugo got Aaron Judge and Austin Wells to make it to outs. But a sinker that stayed in the middle ended up getting hit at 114.1 MPH by Giancarlo Stanton to the wall and the Royals didn’t execute a relay play that would have made it close at the plate. Lugo walked two more in the fifth. Neither scored, but one of them moved up Anthony Volpe, who singled, and then he moved to third on a sacrifice bunt and then scored on a sacrifice fly.