There will be a “Pasquatch ” sighting on Tuesday in Oriole Park at Camden Yards when the Baltimore Orioles host the Kansas City Royals in Game 1 of their AL wild-card series.
When Royals power-hitting first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino suffered his thumb injury on Aug. 29, it was announced that he “could” come back in six-to-eight weeks. Pasquantino has beaten that timeline with his return on Tuesday coming less than five weeks later.
Kansas City is back in the playoffs for the first time since the team won the World Series in 2015.
The turnaround from 2023 has been stunning, as the Royals improved their record this season by 30 games. They tied a franchise record by going just 56-106 last year and went 86-76 in 2024.
It wasn’t easy down the stretch, as Kansas City went 11-14 in September without the third-year slugger. The Royals were in first place in the AL Central as late as Aug. 27, two days before Pasquantino went down, but suffered a pair of seven-game losing streaks down the stretch (Aug. 28-Sept. 3, Sept. 15-22).
Kansas City won four of its final six regular-season contests, though — including a crucial three-game sweep of the Washington Nationals — to secure a postseason berth.
Now, with Pasquantino back on the field, the Royals’ pursuit of another pennant looks more realistic.
Even after missing the final month of the season, the 26-year-old had by far his best season in 2024.
When he suffered his broken thumb, Pasquantino had been leading the Royals in RBI with 97 (fourth in MLB at the time) while ranking second in doubles (30) and walks (40) as well. He still finished the year second in doubles, only behind AL MVP candidate Bobby Witt Jr., while placing third in home runs behind Witt Jr. and nine-time All-Star catcher Salvador Perez.
Pasquantino was also one of the best defensive players at his position in the AL in 2024. Before going down with the injury, he was leading the junior circuit in fielding percentage for a first basemen (.998) and range factor per contest for the position (calculated by dividing putouts and assists by games played) at 8.50.
Now with Pasquantino back, Witt Jr. and Perez have a significant source of power supporting them in the lineup, and the Royals will be a more formidable opponent for the Orioles this week.
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