KANSAS CITY – Bobby Witt Jr. returned from the injured list Tuesday and immediately showed why he was missed with a 3-for-5 day, two runs scored and a nice defensive play at shortstop. Randy Dobnak tossed another solid start with one run allowed in five innings, and the bullpen held strong in the Royals’ 8-2 win over the Twins.
But Tuesday night was all about Salvador Perez from the minute the Royals captain walked into Kauffman Stadium and saw a mini celebration awaiting him, complete with Slugger handing him a crown and cape.
An outfit fit for the new home run king.
The Royals celebrated Perez as the Royals’ all-time home run leader on Tuesday night, the first home game since Perez broke George Brett’s record with his 318th career home run on Aug. 25 in Detroit. They held a pregame ceremony that honored Perez and his family on the field, with a crowd of 20,177 packed into The K. A ‘318’ emblem was painted onto the field behind home plate, and the club raised a flag out in right field with the same logo that will be kept out there for the rest of the season. Perez said he got chills watching the flag being raised.
Brett spoke on the field, saying again how if anyone were to break his record, he’d “want it to be you, Sal.”
Between each inning of the game, the Royals also showed milestone home runs that Perez has hit throughout the years, from No. 1 back in 2011 to No. 300 last year.
“I’m super excited,” Perez said pregame. “Even when I woke up this morning, honest to you guys, I was nervous, too. Kansas City is my second home, like I always say. The way people treat me here, and my family too, makes me feel at home. I’m blessed to come and play for the Kansas City organization. All the fans – I appreciate them for the support.”
The best way to celebrate, though, was with a win, so it was fitting that the Royals pulled out the victory for Perez, who contributed with a sacrifice fly and double Tuesday.
“It’s always great to celebrate Salvy, anything, no matter what,” Witt said. “When you come out with a win on top, you know that’s what he loves the most.”
Perez is not shy about his love for Kansas City, and Tuesday was Kansas City’s chance to celebrate its catcher for the past 15 years, the one who won it all with the Royals in 2015 and chose to stay here despite a lot of losing seasons after the postseason runs.
Again and again, he has emphasized that he wants to finish his career as a Royal.
This season marks No. 20 with the organization and No. 15 in the big leagues. He doesn’t get to 318 home runs all with the same franchise without the loyalty, dedication and talent he’s displayed ever since he first joined as a 16-year-old kid from Venezuela. In many ways, the Royals were celebrating that as much as the record-breaking home run.
“He deserves that, right?” manager Matt Quatraro said. “There was one milestone we were celebrating, but he deserves that as far as the whole body of work.”
And for the record, Perez didn’t think he would be in the same conversation as Brett way back then, let alone be hitting 318 home runs to top Brett. No one really thought of Perez as a power hitter; he was a defense-first catcher as he grew up in the Royals’ system. He joked that all those early home runs the Royals showed on CrownVision throughout Tuesday’s games looked like a “different Salvy,” a skinnier version of the slugger he is now. Now at 36 years old, he’s one strong man who can still barrel baseballs unlike anyone else.
“I don’t think anybody believed I would hit homers,” Perez said. “Even myself, I weighed like 175-180. I just wanted to learn how to hit in the big leagues. Tried to make adjustments every day. Tried to compete every day. And that’s going to come.”
Perez hit the record-tying home run on July 22 here at Kauffman Stadium before the Royals headed out on a 10-game, 11-day road trip, a moment he’ll never forget. He tried to hit the record-breaking homer that day, too, but it wouldn’t come until three days later at Comerica Park.
“For some reason, I hit my first [homer] in Detroit, and I passed the record in Detroit,” Perez said. “I don’t know. God’s plan.”
It only made Tuesday’s celebration more special – and even better with a win at home, too.