Royals beat Mariners on Cain’s 10th-inning single, cut magic number to two

KANSAS CITY, Mo. The mob carried itself to right field, where Lorenzo Cain collapsed beneath the weight of his teammates. In the moments after a stirring, 4-3 victory in 10 innings, Cain and the Royals could celebrate their a comeback in 10 innings.

With two men on and one out, Cain roped a single to right off Mariners reliever Tony Zych to bring home Paulo Orlando from second base. The Royals would strand 16 batters on the evening, but they still exited with a victory.

Kansas City (88-63) extended the game into extra innings with a ninth-inning rally. Cain and Eric Hosmer each cracked hits one-out singles. A walk by Kendrys Morales loaded the bases. Inserted into the game as a pinch-runner in the previous inning, Jarrod Dyson now tied the game with a sacrifice fly to right.

With the win, the Royals reduced their magic number to two. It would require a loss from the Minnesota Twins, but the Royals could clinch their first American League Central crown in franchise history on Thursday night. Kansas City maintained a 11/2 game lead over the Toronto Blue Jays in the chase for home-field advantage throughout the postseason.

The night appeared set for heartbreak heading into the final inning. Hosmer lingered in the dirt near first base as a seventh-inning rally fizzled. He had just been picked off by Seattle reliever Joe Beimel, merely moments after Hosmer notched a single that cut Kansas City’s deficit to one. Now he waited for a reprieve from his dugout, video evidence perhaps of a blown call at the bag.

None came. Hosmer loped to the dugout and shook his head. The move by Beimel, a southpaw, occurred late in his delivery, late enough that Hosmer could not return to the base in time.

The pickoff stood out, but the offense made a habit of stranding runners on Wednesday. In the eighth, Alex Gordon struck out with runners at second and third to miss another opportunity. They left the bases loaded after they tied the game in the ninth.

But in the 10th, Gordon snapped an 0-for-22 streak with a single. It was his first hit since last Monday. Reliever David Rollins hit Ben Zobrist with a pinch. Royals manager Ned Yost sent Orlando to run for Gordon. The maneuver paid off.

Yordano Ventura turned in six innings of three-run baseball. The Mariners plated all of their runs in the fifth.

In his previous three outings, Ventura was unable to complete the sixth inning. The Twins dinged him for four runs on Sept. 7. The Baltimore Orioles scored four against him on Sept. 12. The Cleveland Indians notched three across five laborious innings last week.

Ventura did not labor at the start on Wednesday. He breezed through the Mariners lineup through four innings. After a leadoff single by rookie shortstop Ketel Marte, Ventura retired the next eight batters.

Marte roped a two-out single in the third inning. Ventura responded with six outs in a row.

In the bottom of the fourth, the Royals scored the game’s first run. Morales led off with a single against lefty Roenis Elias. Two batters later, Salvador Perez ambushed a first-pitch fastball and powered it off the center-field wall. Morales held at third base. He scored on a sacrifice fly by Alex Rios.

After the run, Elias lost his command. He issued a two-out walk to Alcides Escobar. Gordon walked to load the bases. Up came Zobrist, who had doubled in his first at-bat and walked his next time up. On this occasion, he swung at the first pitch, a fastball down and away, and grounded out.

For Ventura, trouble arose in the fifth. Mark Trumbo became the first Mariner besides Marte to record a hit. Brad Miller chopped a grounder toward the mound. Ventura bobbled the ball in the grass, then made a throw that veered toward the dugout. Eric Hosmer gloved the ball but could not corral it.

Miller received credit for a single. With two outs, Marte returned to the plate for his third at-bat. Ventura threw a 97-mph fastball at the shins. Marte treated his bat like a sand wedge. He dug the fastball out and ripped it in between Rios and Cain for a two-run triple.

Ventura wobbled for a few more batters. He walked third baseman Kyle Seager and gave up an RBI single to designated hitter Nelson Cruz. But Ventura recovered to log six innings and provide a quality start.

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