The leadoff man leads the way
Jonathan India saves a run with his glove and brings one home with his bat as he makes the difference in the Royals 3-2 victory over the Minnesota Twins.
In their four-game series against the Minnesota Twins, the Royals scored a grand total of nine runs. They also allowed nine runs.
They won three of the four games.
It would be fantastic for the process to yield a few more runs for the offense to take some of the pressure off the pitching, but I can’t argue against the results. At the start of this series, I wrote that with the AL Central expected to be a tight race with four of the five teams with a shot of capturing the title, all intradivisional games carry a degree of elevated importance. Taking three out of four is a great series, especially when the offense couldn’t ever get out of second gear.
Thursday’s 3-2 win was largely on the back of one man: Jonathan India. He prevented a run from scoring in the second. He made a couple of other really nice defensive plays. And he came through in a massive situation with a 10-pitch at bat that ultimately swung the game in the Royals’ favor.
Last season, the Royals tuned up Minnesota starting pitcher Bailey Ober like they were the proverbial schoolyard bully looking for lunch money. He made three starts against the Royals in 2024 and allowed 14 runs over 13.1 innings. That’s an unsightly 9.45 ERA. It wasn’t like Ober was shooting himself in the foot, giving the Royals all sorts of free baserunners—he allowed only one walk. Nope, the Royals hitters collectively had Ober’s number, batting .322 with a .695 slugging percentage.
As the game opened, it looked as if the Royals were going to pick up against Ober where they left off last season. With one out in the bottom of the first, the Royals strung together three consecutive singles with Bobby Witt Jr., Vinnie Pasquantino (breaking an 0-11 skid) and Salvador Perez having the honors. Perez’s single plated Witt (as you would expect) and the Royals held a 1-0 lead.
From there, though, Ober settled in. Witt was a pest, with a double down the left field line and reaching on an error, but the only other runners came on a bunt single from Freddy Fermin and a walk to Cavan Biggio. Ober finished six innings on only 73 pitches.
I was a bit skeptical about Jonathan India moving off his normal position of second base. Fine…I was more than a bit skeptical. The reports from spring training weren’t especially glowing, and the eye test once the regular season got underway said he wasn’t entirely comfortable at either third base or left field. Passable, but not comfortable.
Man, we’re only a handful of games into the season, and I already have to reevaluate that line of thinking. On Wednesday, India started in left field and made a fine running grab on a shallow pop that was down the line. On Thursday at third base with the infield playing in, India flashed his hot corner reflexes going to his left to field a ground ball and make a solid throw home to cut down the potential go-ahead run.
The ball wasn’t hit that hard, but the degree of difficulty was elevated with the infield playing in. It was early in the game, but this was a huge shift in what was happening at the time. Ty France (yes, him again) homered to lead off the inning. With one out, Edouard Julien doubled and took third on an error from center fielder Drew Waters. With the infield drawn in, had that ball gotten through, the Twins were set for a big inning.
I think we can sometimes lose sight of the fact that it’s difficult to move positions like India is doing. The angles on the batted balls are different. The reaction times are shorter at third. He’s running more in the outfield. The angles and speed required on the throws are also completely new.
Oh! He also made a fine play later in the game, going to his right on a one-hopper.
I’m impressed. The guy is a gamer and obviously a heckuva athlete to move to two new positions. He’s only going to get better the more reps he gets in both left and at third.
The one place India has always looked comfortable is at the plate with a bat in his hands. Acquired to solidify the leadoff spot, he’s doing exactly that with a .357 OBP through the first 13 games of the season. The guy just never, ever gives away an at bat.
Witness the game’s pivotal moment on Thursday. With the Royals trailing 2-1 in the bottom of the seventh, they had runners at first and third when the lineup flipped back over to India. The mission: To at least bring home the tying run from third. That meant, at a minimum, a fly ball deep enough to bring a run home.
Against reliever Cole Sands, India took a high and tight cutter for ball one. What unfolded next was a 10-pitch battle where India fouled off four consecutive 3-2 pitches. On the 10th pitch of the at bat, a four-seamer, he lined a single down the left field line to bring home the tying run.
The location of those pitches was nasty. Right on the edges for the most part. Once India had two strikes against him, he alternated between protect mode and taking a healthy rip. He got some wood on pitches six and nine above to stay alive. He was on pitches seven and eight, fouling them back. Pitch 10 was probably the most hittable pitch India saw in that sequence. And he hit it. What an at bat to tie the game at 2-2.
Waters was the runner on first and motored around to third. That allowed Witt, up next, to drive home the go-ahead run with a sacrifice fly.
Here’s Matt Quatraro on India’s at bat:
“His at bats are really good. I know he hasn’t had the results he’s looked for since the first few days of the year, but he sees the ball really well. Sands is throwing upper 90s with a cutter. He stayed on a lot of pitches. He just missed a couple, just fouling them straight back, but he was on everything. To be able to come through in that spot is big for him, his confidence, it was probably his first big RBI in a game-tying situation for him with us. The guys love him. For him to come through is really nice.”
India is quickly becoming a favorite. With Perez and Pasquantino off to slow starts, the Royals have yet to realize the true impact a player like India can have at the top of the order. Once the third and fourth positions in the lineup come around, this offense will be able to find a more consistent groove.
It was Thirsty Thursday in Northwest Arkansas as the Naturals hosted the Frisco RoughRiders. I hope there was enough moisture left in the stadium after Jac Caglianone lit another baseball on fire.
Reports from the game had a Caglianone single leaving his bat with an exit velocity of 120.9 mph. Readers, that is an insane amount of heat.
For some perspective, since baseball began measuring, there have been five players in Major League Baseball who have topped an exit velocity of 120 mph. Five players!
Aaron Judge, Gary Sánchez and Ronald Acuña Jr. have each done it once. Oneil Cruz has done it five times and owns the fastest recorded exit velocity at 122.4 mph. Giancarlo Stanton has done it a whopping 16 times. The full leaderboard can be found here.
I try to maintain a level of relative calm when it comes to prospect hype. I am not succeeding when it comes to Jac Caglianone.
Central Issues
White Sox 1, Guardians 6
Remember when the White Sox started the season 2-2? About that…Since then they’ve dropped eight straight. Chicago actually jumped to a 1-0 lead in the first with the runner scoring on a wild pitch. The lead didn’t last as Kyle Manzardo blasted a two-run shot in the bottom of the frame. Steven Kwan added a two-run home run of his own in the third as the Guardians swept the series.
The Royals picked up a half-game on idle Detroit and are now just one up in the loss column, with Cleveland also sitting on six losses.
How about a weekly check-in on the playoff odds in the AL Central?
Up Next
More Central Division action is on the cards as the Royals kick off a 10-game road trip with a three-game series in Cleveland.
Fri at CLE - LHP Kris Bubic (2-0, 0.00) vs. RHP Tanner Bibee (1-1, 6.52), 5:10 p.m.
Sat at CLE - RHP Michael Lorenzen (1-1, 3.18) vs. RHP Luis Ortiz (0-2, 8.44), 5:10 p.m.
Sun at CLE - LHP Cole Ragans (0-0, 2.81) vs. RHP Ben Lively (0-1, 4.40), 12:40 p.m.
It’s a big road trip for April, as all 10 games will come against teams who made the postseason in 2024 and are eyeing a return trip. After three in Cleveland, it will be off to New York for a three-game set against the Yankees. From there, the Royals travel to Detroit for four games against the Tigers.
Boy it didn't take long for Minnesota to fall down the playoff odds chart, did it? I'm fascinated by how low Cleveland is on there, and very interested to see what it looks like when KC leaves Detroit.
When the Royals acquired India I was excited for what he meant for the lineup, but not for him as a player. I was aware of him in Cincinnati, but after his rookie season he hadn't gotten a lot of love and I kind of worried he was on a downward spiral. Instead, despite learning two new positions on the fly, he looks like he's headed for a career renaissance that should lead to him being very good for years to come. Now I'm kind of hoping the Royals are in extension talks with him (along with Kris and Cole...)
After seeing your throw home clip and hearing India's post game interview, I am convinced Bobby Witt Jr is the voice of the ghost in Field of Dreams. You can practically see Witt in Indias head as he is right behind him saying "get rid of the ball" (go the distance).
Point being, Jr doesn't just get in the opposing teams heads with his speed and magnificent defense, he also elevates the players on our team (yes I have flipped to possessive three weeks in). Many have said that Witt raises the bar, but I think that play perfectly illustrates it. Hats off to India for stepping up.