KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Only one Kansas City Royals hurler on the American League Division Series roster has ever pitched in the World Series.
And he’ll get the ball to start Game 4 on Thursday as the Royals, who trail 2-1 in the best-of-five ALDS against the New York Yankees, aim to stave off elimination and force a winner-take-all battle Saturday in the Bronx.
“All hands will be on deck,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “You have to put everything out there to try to stave off elimination. But we have (Michael) Wacha going. We have a ton of confidence in him, so we're going to approach it like a regular game — but understand what the gravity of the situation is.”
Wacha was a rookie with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2013 when he started two World Series games against the Boston Red Sox, picking up the win in Game 2 and taking the loss in Game 6 to close out the series.
“My first year in 2013, it was a lot of fun,” Wacha said. “We were able to make a run all the way to the World Series. At the time, I was the new guy. It was all new experiences to me. I had never been in those types of situations, that type of atmosphere before, so I really relied on those veteran guys.”
Now, Wacha, who also pitched in the postseason in 2014 and 2015 with St. Louis and 2021 with Tampa Bay, is the veteran on a Kansas City team with relatively little playoff experience.
And Kansas City is counting on to keep the season alive, but he understands the mission.
“Whether it's a clinching game or it's an elimination game, it's a must-win in my mind either way,” Wacha said before Game 3 on Wednesday at Kauffman Stadium. “I want to go out there and give our guys a chance to win a ballgame just like any other start throughout the season. This one is no different. I want to get out there, hopefully go deep (into the game), and give our guys a chance to win a ballgame.”
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