Kansas City Royals lose on walkoff sac fly, but Zack Greinke reaches this MLB milestone

Pitcher Zack Greinke received a royal coronation in the dugout after making MLB history. The Kansas City Royals star joined an exclusive list, becoming just the fifth pitcher to strike out 1,000 different batters.

The list includes some iconic names. With five strikeouts Saturday night against the Milwaukee Brewers, Greinke’s name is now etched beside MLB legends Nolan Ryan, Randy Johnson, Greg Maddux and Roger Clemens. He recorded the strikeout in the fifth inning of the Royals’ 4-3 loss.

“It was pretty neat,” Greinke said reaching the milestone.

On the big pitch, Greinke threw a four-seam fastball at 89.5 mph to freeze Brewers outfielder Joey Wiemer. Wiemer was rung up after a seven-pitch at-bat to end the frame.

The Royals retrieved the baseball after it was thrown into the stands.

Greinke said he didn’t think too much about the historic moment right after it happened. He caught wind of it as teammates celebrated the accomplishment.

“I guess I still didn’t know anything was going on,” Greinke said. “Then they were a little bit more excited than normal. I was like, ‘Oh yeah, that’s what happened.’”

Missed the previous game of this series?

Game 1: Royals silenced in against Brewers ace Corbin Burnes

Greinke greatness

It was a hallmark night for Royals veteran Greinke.

He allowed two runs on three hits in five innings and did not allow a walk. The lone blemish for his evening was allowing a third-inning home run to Brewers star Christian Yelich, who homered twice Saturday.

Royals manager Matt Quatraro was in awe of all Greinke’s career milestone. He praised his longevity and ability to compete at a high level.

“I can’t really process it as I have become enthralled with that stat since they told us about it,” Quatraro said. “It’s just amazing to me to think about how many different people that is. A thousand is just a number, but when you think about how many different players that is over the course of 19 years, it’s amazing to me.

“What he is able to do is adapt. He is still getting strikeouts with different pitches and not throwing 95. (He’s) locating, mixing and changing speeds. It’s pretty impressive.”

The next milestone for Greinke is 3,000 career strikeouts. He is currently 86 strikeouts away from becoming the 17th MLB pitcher to reach the mark.

A close game throughout

Yelich hit a towering two-run blast off the scoreboard in center. He followed that by hitting a second homer off Royals reliever Josh Taylor in the sixth inning.

“Yelich is a great player,” Quatraro said. “He is a MVP so it’s not surprising. It’s disappointing, for sure, but he has done that to a lot of people.”

The Royals held serve with a balanced attack. Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. began the game with a leadoff double. He later scored on a sac fly by outfielder MJ Melendez.

Royals catcher Salvador Perez regained the lead for KC in the fifth inning. Perez hit his 231st career home run off Brewers starter Adrian Houser. The homer was his 193rd as a catcher (not including DH) and moved Perez into a 10th-place tie with Todd Hundley for most all-time at the position.

The Brewers wouldn’t go away quietly. In the ninth inning, Milwaukee rallied as the 35,766 in attendance cheered. Brewers outfielder Brian Anderson singled to start the inning and Brewers third baseman Owen Miller soon followed with a double.

That set up the final blow, with Brewers outfielder Joey Wiemer hitting a sacrifice fly to win it. The Royals fell to 12-29 and will look to salvage a game in the series Sunday afternoon.

Salvy returns with a bang

Perez wasted no time in his return to the Royals’ starting lineup after missing Friday’s game with blurry vision.

In the fifth inning, Perez smashed a solo home run over the left-field wall. The blast traveled 382 feet and registered a 101.6 mph exit velocity. It was his eighth home run of the season.

The Royals have now homered in 12 consecutive games, just three shy of the franchise record. The mark was set in 2001, when the Royals had a 15-game stretch from April 6-22.

After the game, Perez explained that he felt fine at the plate. He said blurry vision is something that he has managed in his career before.

“I have been through this the last two years,” he said. “I just needed to give it a day. Give it some time. I think it’s going to be good in a few days.”

Double Trouble: Pratto’s tear continues

Royals first baseman Nick Pratto has a new groove since being recalled from Triple-A Omaha on April 28. Pratto entered Saturday’s game with a .370 batting average and 12 RBIs in 14 games since his promotion to the big leagues.

On Saturday, Pratto added to his offensive revival. He went 2-for-3 and collected two doubles. He tallied his 13th RBI and now has 20 hits this season. It was his seventh multi-hit game this season.

What’s next: The Royals conclude their three-game series with the Brewers on Sunday. Jordan Lyles draws the start against Brewers right-hander Colin Rea.