BALTIMORE — Bobby Witt Jr. made the most of his much-anticipated playoff debut, driving in the only run Tuesday to back Cole Ragans’ six sharp innings and help the Kansas City Royals return from a nine-year postseason absence with a 1-0 victory over the Baltimore Orioles in Game 1 of their AL Wild Card Series.
Witt, the 24-year-old shortstop who led the majors with 211 hits and a .332 batting average this season, singled to left field off a 95 mph, first-pitch cutter from 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 allowed runners to swipe 41 bases this season, a major league high — and moving to third on a groundout.
Just after Witt delivered, Kansas City Chiefs star quarterback Patrick Mahomes posted on social media: “Let’s go!! Keep it going!!! @Royals”
They couldn’t keep adding to their lead, but that didn’t matter, thanks to Ragans, who was every bit as good as, if not better than, Burnes before leaving after 80 pitches because of cramping in his left calf, plus a bullpen that was KC’s weakness during the regular season but was more than fine Tuesday.
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 a 30-win improvement has them back in October for the first time since they won 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, although it was expected to be Zach Eflin.
Baltimore has lost its past nine postseason games, a skid that dates to 2014.
Ragans, a lefty All-Star picked up in a trade with the Texas Rangers last season, was terrific, mixing a 98 mph fastball with a variety of off-speed offerings while allowing just four hits and striking out eight.
Burnes looked every bit the ace Baltimore hoped it was getting when it acquired him from the Milwaukee Brewers in February. The AL’s All-Star starter this season exited to a standing ovation from the orange-clad fans at Camden Yards after giving up a leadoff single in the ninth. He allowed 1 run, 5 hits and that 1 key 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 homers trailed only the Yankees in 2024 — could not come through in the clutch.
The Orioles got a runner to third in the third, but Jordan Westburg flied out to the warning track in left. The hosts then put men at the corners with one out in the fifth, but Ragans struck out 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 out, Erceg replaced Bubic and got Anthony Santander to ground into a fielder’s choice.
Trainer’s room
Royals: First baseman Vinnie Pasquantino came off the injured list for this series after being out since Aug. 29 with a broken right thumb, and he was in his usual No. 3 spot in the starting lineup as the DH. He won’t be able to play the field for another two to three weeks — if KC remains in the postseason. Pasquantino went 0-for-3 on Tuesday.
Up next
Lugo (16-9, 3.00 ERA) will make the first postseason start of his career. “Something I’ve been looking forward to for a long time,” he said.
Eflin went 10-9 with a 3.59 ERA combined for Tampa Bay and Baltimore in 2024.