Royals shut out Orioles to win Game 1 of AL Wild Card Series

BALTIMORE – Bobby Witt Jr. made the most of his long-awaited playoff debut, driving in the lone run Tuesday to back up Cole Ragans’ sharp six innings and help the Kansas City Royals return from a nine-year postseason absence with a 1-0 win over the Baltimore Orioles in Game 1 of their AL Wild Card Series.

Witt, the 24-year-old shortstop who led the majors this season with 211 hits and a .332 batting average, singled to left field at 95 mph, pitching first to 2021 NL Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes with two outs in the sixth. Maikel Garcia came around to score after drawing a walk, stealing second – Burnes has allowed runners to sweep a Major League-high 41 bases this season – and moving to third on a grounder.

Just after Witt delivered, Kansas City Chiefs star quarterback Patrick Mahomes posted on social media: “Let’s go!! Keep up the good work!!! @Royals”

They couldn’t continue to grow their lead, but it didn’t matter, thanks to Ragans, who was as good, if not better, than Burnes before leaving after 80 pitches due to cramps in his left calf, plus a bullpen. that was KC’s weakness during the regular season, but on Tuesday it was more than fine.

Sam Long, Kris Bubic and Lucas Erceg, who earned the save, shut down the Orioles the rest of the way.

The Royals lost 106 games last season, but with a 30-win improvement, they’ll be back in October for the first time since winning the 2015 World Series.

Now they can end this best-of-three series and advance to an AL Division Series against the New York Yankees by winning Game 2 in Baltimore on Wednesday, when KC will send All-Star Seth Lugo to the mound. Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said he wouldn’t announce his starter until after Tuesday’s game, though it was expected to be Zach Eflin.

Baltimore has lost its last nine postseason games, a skid that dates back to 2014.

Ragans, a lefty All-Star picked up in a trade with the Texas Rangers last season, was stellar, mixing a 98 mph fastball with a variety of off-speed offerings while allowing just four hits and striking out eight.

Burnes seemed like exactly the asset Baltimore was hoping to get when it acquired him from the Milwaukee Brewers in February. The AL’s All-Star starter this season received a standing ovation from the orange-clad fans at Camden Yards after giving up a leadoff single in the ninth. He allowed one run, five hits and that one important walk.

The right-hander became the first starter to throw a pitch in the ninth inning of a postseason game since Washington ace Stephen Strasburg in Game 6 of the 2019 World Series against Houston.

But Baltimore’s sluggers — the team’s 232 home runs trailed only the Yankees in 2024 — couldn’t get through.

The Orioles got a runner to third in the third, but Jordan Westburg flied out on the warning track in left. The hosts then put men on the corners with one out in the fifth, but Ragans retired James McCann and 2023 AL Rookie of the Year Gunnar Henderson to end that threat.

And in the eighth, with a pair on and two outs, Erceg replaced Bubic and got Anthony Santander to ground into a fielder’s choice.

Trainer’s room Royals: 1B Vinnie Pasquantino came off the injured list for this series after being out since August 29 with a broken right thumb, and was in his usual No. 3 spot in the starting lineup as a DH. He might not be able to play on the field for the next two to three weeks – if KC stays in the postseason. Pasquantino went 0 for 3 on Tuesday.

Next Lugo (16-9, 3.00 ERA) will make the first postseason start of his career. “It’s something I’ve been looking forward to for a long time,” he says.

Eflin went 10-9 with a 3.59 ERA combined for Tampa Bay and Baltimore in 2024.