KC 3, LAA 2: Moustakas belts solo homer in 11th to give Royals 1-0 ALDS series lead
Mike Moustakas hit a solo home run in the top of the 11th inning and Alcides Escobar and Omar Infante drove in a run apiece as the Kansas City Royals prevailed 3-2 over the Los Angeles Angels in Game 1 of the American League Division Series.
Moustakas picked a good time for his first career postseason home run, taking Fernando Salas - the Angels' fifth pitcher of the night - deep to right field to break a 2-2 tie in the top of the 11th inning.
Royals closer Greg Holland, who arrived late for the game after leaving Wednesday for the birth of his first child, pitched a 1-2-3 bottom of the frame to earn his first career postseason save.
The teams combined to score five runs on only eight hits. The Angels used a pair of solo bombs from Chris Iannetta and David Freese to pull even in the third and fifth innings, respectively. The Royals cashed in on an Alcides Escobar RBI double in the third inning to take a 1-0 lead and then took a 2-1 advantage on an Omar Infante sacrifice fly in the fifth frame.
Lorenzo Cain and Nori Aoki both made a pair of outstanding defensive plays in the victory to prevent the Angels from ever taking the lead in the contest.
X-factor
Royals pitchers effectively shut down the heart of the Angels order, holding Mike Trout, Albert Pujols and Howie Kendrick - the team's No. 2, 3, and 4 hitters - to a combined 0-for-13 with two walks. Trout went 0-for-4 with a walk in his first career playoff game, and lost a fly ball in the lights in the fifth inning that led to a Royals run that knotted the contest at 2-2. Not the debut the American League MVP candidate was looking for.
Starting pitchers' lines
| Pitcher | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jason Vargas | 6 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Jered Weaver | 7 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
Highlights
Lorenzo Cain made a pair of incredible catches early in the contest to keep the Angels off the board. His first-inning snare to rob Kole Calhoun of extra bases helped set the tone for the game.
Moustakas' game-winning homer off Salas.
(Courtesy: MLB.com)
Quote of the Night
Eric Hosmer: "That was some good stuff."
— Andy McCullough (@McCulloughStar) October 3, 2014
Up Next
The Royals will look to a take a 2-0 series lead Friday behind rookie Yordano Ventura (14-10, 3.20 ERA), while the Angels counter with righty Matt Shoemaker (16-4, 3.04 ERA). Ventura served up a three-run home run to Brandon Moss in his postseason debut that nearly cost the Royals the AL wild-card game, while Shoemaker will be making his first start since Sept. 15 due to an oblique injury.