Drew Waters’ third home run of the series for the Kansas City Royals lifted his team to an extra-inning victory, evened the series and put a positive end note on the final start of the season for veteran pitcher Zack Greinke on Monday night.
Waters blasted a three-run home run in the 10th inning, a towering 379-foot blast to left field, and that proved the difference in a 5-2 win over the Cleveland Guardians in front of an announced 18,688 in the fourth game of a season-ending six-game series at Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio.
Waters, who homered in back-to-back games on Friday and Saturday, went 2 for 4 with four RBIs and the deciding home run for the Royals (65-95). In his last 15 games, Waters has batted .311 with a .380 on-base percentage, four home runs and 13 RBIs.
The 10th-inning homer came against Guardians pitcher Kirk McCarty, who Waters also homered against over the weekend.
Greinke, who got a no decision, made his final start of his season and perhaps the final outing of his second stint as a member of the club. He handcuffed the Guardians (90-70) for the better part of six innings.
Greinke, 38, allowed two runs, only one earned, on seven hits and one walk. He turned in his ninth quality start of the season, and he finished the year with back-to-back quality starts.
Greinke signed a one-year free-agent contract prior to the season, which brought him back to the franchise that drafted him and where he began his career. Greinke, who won the Cy Young Award with the Royals in 2009, has made 195 of his 514 regular-season career starts with the Royals.
Royals rookie shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. went 1 for 5 with a stolen base and a run scored. The stolen base gave him 30 this season to go along with his 20 home runs.
The last five players in the majors to accumulate 20 homers and 30 steals in a season at age 22 or younger are Ronald Acuna, Barry Bond, Alex Rodriguez, Mike Trout (twice) and now Witt.
Royals rookie second baseman Michael Massey went 1 for 3 with an RBI, and outfielder Edward Olivares went 1 for 4 with a run scored.
Royals catcher Salvador Perez received a second consecutive day off. He came out of Saturday’s game, after his seventh-inning home run, due to left-thumb soreness. That’s the same thumb Perez had surgery on earlier this season. His status is considered day-to-day.
Royals relievers Amir Garrett, Dylan Coleman, Scott Barlow and Taylor Clarke each pitched a scoreless inning. Clarke earned his third save of the season, and Barlow picked up the win.
Royals pitching stranded 10 Guardians runners on base as their hitters went 0 for 15 with runners in scoring position. The Guardians had just one hit, one walk and one hit batter in the final four innings.
