Witt provides spark, igniting 5-run rally ... with 2 outs

KANSAS CITY -- Bobby Witt Jr. has shown that he can change a game with one swing, with one defensive play or with the blur of his legs as he runs around the bases. Wednesday afternoon was no different.

Down one run with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning, the Royals’ offense was as quiet as it’s been all week, frustration mounting as the hitters weren’t able to back up another stellar starting performance.

That’s when Witt lined the first pitch he saw from Marlins reliever Huascar Brazoban out to the center-field wall. Witt was thinking triple out of the box -- quite literally after his first step, he said -- and he made it from home to third in 11.12 seconds, electrifying the Royals’ dugout and the crowd at Kauffman Stadium with his eighth triple of the year.

“He’s that spark plug for us,” third baseman Nick Loftin said.

What followed was -- finally -- some offensive momentum for the Royals. Vinnie Pasquantino brought Witt home with a game-tying single into center field before Salvador Perez followed with a go-ahead RBI double, and the Royals knocked three more hits along with a walk en route to a five-run inning and a 5-1 win over the Marlins to salvage a series win.

Six hits in the eighth inning were more than the hit totals in three of the Royals’ previous four games before Wednesday. Their 10 hits overall on Wednesday marked their first game with double-digit hits since June 12 -- and four of those knocks came with runners in scoring position.

The Royals had gone just 8-for-57 (.140) in scoring situations in their previous 11 games (since June 14).

“I think [Witt] can do that any time he’s up, but in that spot, we’ve clearly been pretty dead offensively,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “We’ve talked about it -- sometimes we’re not going to come through. But we got to keep putting pressure on and keep putting ourselves in those positions.”

“Just trying to spark something,” Witt added. “... We were maybe in a little -- whatever it was, but now we’re back playing some ball. Doing our thing.”

Starter Brady Singer didn’t get credit for the win -- Angel Zerpa got his first of the season -- but Singer's 7 1/3 innings of one-run ball were the reason the Royals were able to come back at all. Wednesday's outing marked a season high in innings for Singer, and was the seventh game of his career with at least 7 1/3 innings pitched.

After feeling off with his command the first two innings and not liking his pitch shapes, Singer made adjustments, including to attack the zone more and he got into the eighth inning with 92 pitches. The Marlins whiffed aggressively at his slider, but they were also kept off balance with Singer’s four-seamer after he tweaked the grip this week to make it more consistent.

“To get into the eighth inning and use my stuff effectively in the zone, I just started kind of getting better as the day went on,” Singer said. “Just settle in. Try not to do too much. Use a little bit more of the plate -- maybe I was trying to be too fine in those first two innings. But just trust my stuff.”

Singer was also the third consecutive Royals starter to deliver a quality start, as Kansas City's rotation held Miami to just two runs across 19 1/3 innings (0.93 ERA) over the three-game series.

The offense has done very little to support that excellent starting pitching, and frustration has built up because of it. On Wednesday, the Royals mustered just two hits against Marlins starter Valente Bellozo in his MLB debut. Singer exited in the eighth inning in line for the loss, if the score had stayed the same.

“For them to grind back and do what they did -- it’s how we’re going to win games and stay in this thing,” Singer said.

So there was some cathartic release in the eighth inning when Kansas City batted around. When Loftin roped a single into left field, he threw his arms up at first base and pumped up the Royals’ dugout.

There was energy again, and the Royals kept the line moving.

“I’m looking at everybody in the dugout,” Loftin said. “It’s a blur when it gets to that point. Just trying to fire them up as much as I can. It’s great when you get the momentum going on our side with big hits from Vinnie and Sal. It motivates me to go up there and try to do the same.”