ANAHEIM -- Vinnie Pasquantino's power helped the Royals jump out to an early lead Thursday night, and Salvador Perez's power broke the game wide open at the end.
Together, the two anchors in the middle of the lineup helped Kansas City to a 9-4 victory over the Angels at Angel Stadium, clinching the series win and sending the Royals off to West Sacramento for the final series of the year. Two more wins would secure a winning season for the Royals, who are 80-79 with three games to play.
After hitting his 30th homer during the Royals' final homestand last week, Perez’s bases-clearing double in the ninth inning Thursday gave the captain exactly 100 RBIs on the year, the second season in his career to reach those marks following his record-breaking 2021 campaign.
Pasquantino hit his team-leading 32nd home run of the year in the top of the first inning Thursday, a two-run blast into the right-field seats off lefty Mitch Farris. A double play-turned-fielder's choice after the Royals challenged the out call in the third inning gave Pasquantino his third RBI of the night and 111 on the season.
Thus, history: Perez and Pasquantino are the first set of teammates in Royals history to both record at least 30 homers and 100 RBIs in a season.
The power is huge,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “We lacked it early in the year, and then they came on strong in the middle. I know those guys want to win more than anything.”
Despite slow starts from both players this season, Perez and Pasquantino have bashed their way through 2025. Perez slashed .235/.279/.374 with two homers and 15 RBIs through April, while Pasquantino slashed .177/.242/.327 with four homers and 18 RBIs.
Pasquantino really began finding his way in May and June and has posted an .869 OPS since the All-Star break, while Perez has a .793 OPS in that same span.
“I think we both wish we would have done more,” Pasquantino said. “When you look at the numbers on paper, you’re happy about them, but I felt like there was more out there that we could have gotten, and we didn’t this year, which sucks. Numbers-wise, it’s pretty cool.
"But I think both of us will be pretty honest about how we feel like we could have done some more things.”
Indeed, there’s disappointment in how the Royals' season will end on Sunday rather than in October, with the club unable to make it back to the postseason after its '24 run.
A lot of the reason why is because of inconsistent offense and the club's struggles with runners in scoring position. But the overall performances from Perez and Pasquantino this year, along with Bobby Witt Jr. and Maikel Garcia at the top of the lineup, are further proof that the Royals might be a bat or two away from seeing the offense truly take a step forward.
"I think any player that plays in the big leagues wants to reach 100 RBIs,” Perez said. “That's one of the goals when the season starts. So yeah, feels good. I would feel better if we made it to the playoffs.”
Perez has been doing this a long time, but Pasquantino is putting the finishing touches on what has been a breakout year for him, further establishing himself as a core piece of the Royals’ lineup. His 32 home runs rank third best among MLB first basemen this year, behind Pete Alonso’s 37 and Nick Kurtz’s 35. Pasquantino’s 111 RBIs rank second behind Alonso’s 123.
Pasquantino is just the fourth left-handed batter to record a 30-homer season in Royals history. And Pasquantino is just the third Royals lefty to hit at least 30 doubles and 30 homers in a season, following George Brett in 1985 and John Mayberry in 1975.
The Royals’ offense Thursday backed starter Michael Lorenzen, who tossed 5 2/3 innings and allowed two runs with a career-high-tying nine strikeouts against his hometown Angels. Lorenzen grew up about five miles from Angel Stadium and made 18 starts for the Halos in 2022.
"It’s been fun to come back,” Lorenzen said. “They lit me up quite a bit last year when I came back, so that wasn’t fun. It was nice to be able to just have a good one here against them.”
Thursday’s start likely marks the end of his time with the Royals, as it’s unlikely his $12 million mutual option is picked up. Lorenzen appeared in 27 games for the Royals this year, posting a 4.64 ERA across 141 2/3 innings.