Photo Credit: Financial CV
For the first time since 1985, the Kansas City Royals took home the 2015 World Series victory in extra innings, defeating the New York Mets on their home field, 7-2. Leading the series 3-1, the Royals found themselves down 2-0 coming into the top of the ninth, but a pair of runs sent the the game into extra innings, and a 5 run 12th inning allowed the Royals to run away with their first championship in 30 years. The Royals took the first two games of the World Series, defeating the Mets 4-5 and 1-7 respectively. Game 3 went to the Mets with a 9-3 victory, but they then dropped the last two games by scores of 5-3 and 7-2 to finish out the 2015 series.
In game 5, the Mets led the entire game, but that was not enough to stop the Royals’. Center fielder Lorenzo Cain started the rally by earning a walk. He followed that up with a stolen base, which put him in scoring position for first baseman Eric Hosmer to drive him home on a double. Still down 2-1, Hosmer then advanced to 3rd on a Mike Moustakas ground out, and later scored on a Salvador Perez ground out to tie the game. The Mets went 0-3 in their final at bat. Their failure failing to score in the bottom of the ninth sent game 5 into extra innings. After over two scoreless extra innings, the Royals finally came alive at the plate and blew the game open in the 12th. Christian Colon’s RBI single let Jarrod Dyson score, and gave the Royals their first lead of the game. Alcides Escobar then doubled down the left field line, scoring Colon. The rally continued when Cain doubled deep to left center scoring Paulo Orlando, Escobar and Ben Zobrist, making the score 7-2.
According to MLB.com, the Royals had come from behind again for the eighth time in their 11 postseason games. Kansas City fought back against two of the top arms in MLB, Matt Harvey and Jeurys Familia. Harvey was “simply on fire,” stated CNN, pitching into the ninth inning, and throwing 111 pitches, giving up only two runs and five hits. Harvey pitched eight scoreless innings before faltering in the ninth. “I wanted it bad. The way the game was going, the last thing I wanted to do was not finish what I started. I poured my heart out and gave everything I had,” stated Harvey (Fox Sports).
Mets’ manager Terry Collins told Fox Sports after letting Harvey go one more inning, “obviously, I let my heart get in the way of my gut. I loved my players. And I trust them. It didn’t work. It was my fault.” “From day one, there was no doubt in my mind that they wouldn’t accomplish it. There was not doubt in their mind that they wouldn’t accomplish it. It’s just a special, special group that doesn’t come around very often,” said Royals manager Ned Yost. (Fox Sports). The Royals returned home to Kansas City for the Champions’ parade Tuesday afternoon to celebrate the club’s second title. “We never quit. We never put out heads down,” Perez said. “We always compete to the last out.” (ESPN.com) K