Gutierrez 'ready to go' after 'hectic' callup

“I’m here in Terminal 2,” said Kelvin Gutierrez’s Uber driver on Friday, as Gutierrez waited outside of what was likely Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport (though all he knew for sure was that the airport was “the big one”).

Gutierrez, who had been in Terminal 1, walked to Terminal 2 but told his driver he still couldn’t see the car.

“Are you up or are you down?” asked the driver.

Gutierrez was downstairs and the driver was upstairs, so again Gutierrez had to walk to find the car. Just to add another issue to Gutierrez’s day, once he found the car, his Uber got stuck in Chicago traffic.

But none of that mattered to Gutierrez. He was far too happy to allow some travel issues to get him down, because he was on his way to Guaranteed Rate Field to join the Royals during their split doubleheader with the White Sox.

“We got a report when his flight had landed, we got a report when he was in the car [that] he's hitting some traffic,” Kansas City manager Mike Matheny said Saturday. “We were keeping up, so I think we were probably as excited about him getting here as he was.”

Earlier in the day on Friday, the Royals had made a flurry of roster moves, and those didn’t end once the doubleheader between Kansas City and Chicago began.

Gutierrez was recalled from Triple-A Omaha and added to the Royals’ roster in between Games 1 and 2 of the twin bill after third baseman Hunter Dozier was placed on the seven-day injured list. Matheny confirmed Saturday that Dozier experienced some concussion symptoms after being involved in a collision with White Sox first baseman José Abreu, which forced Dozier out of Game 1's 6-2 win and necessitated his move to the IL.

“You can't put people on that IL precautionary,” Matheny said. “There has to be enough reason for the medical team, and it goes to Major League Baseball. So you're going to be precautionary by pulling him out of the game, but once they go get looked at and [get] tests done, then it comes down to what those symptoms and signs are telling us.”

After Dozier’s diagnosis, the Royals immediately recalled Gutierrez from the Storm Chasers, which the team announced less than an hour before the first pitch of Game 2's 3-1 loss.

Gutierrez had been with Omaha in the middle of a six-game road series against Columbus. Gutierrez said he was given about 30 minutes to get all of his things from the field and the hotel to catch his 6 p.m. flight to Chicago. He arrived at Guaranteed Rate Field around the third inning.

It wasn’t in time to get him into the starting lineup, but it was enough to get him a pinch-hit at-bat in the seventh inning, when he managed to move Jarrod Dyson into scoring position with Kansas City down 3-1. That quick turnaround from preparing for a Triple-A game to being ready to hit in a late-game situation in the Majors impressed Matheny.

“It was a hectic day, but worth it for him, I know,” he said. “And then, we give him a chance late in the game to come in, just to show him the faith that we have and [that we’re] excited to have him be a part of what we're doing.”

However, Matheny had already been impressed with Gutiérrez, who went 2-for-4 after being penciled in to hit fifth in the lineup and start at third on Saturday in a 5-1 win over the White Sox.

Matheny said he likes to be prepared with a back-up option in case any of his players go down. For Dozier -- and for many of the Royals position players -- the first name that popped into Matheny’s mind was Gutierrez.

Though he hasn’t been able to stick through multiple stints with the big league club over the past two seasons, Gutierrez has been productive in Triple-A since the Minor League season began on May 4. He slashed .306/.342/.444 and recorded four RBIs and four extra-base hits in nine games, saying through translator Luis Perez that “being consistent with [my] swing” and “always staying gap to gap” have been his main focuses at the plate.

He wasn’t in the Royals’ Opening Day plans, and a swift return for Dozier could make Gutierrez's current big league stint a quick one. But Gutierrez was ready for the call and said he’ll be here to help the team win as long as he’s needed.

“I feel good. I feel great,” he said. “I'm ready to go.”