Kansas City Royals give Zack Greinke special sendoff in season finale vs. the Yankees

Zack Greinke took a minute to soak in the moment.

The Kansas City Royals veteran has never been one for the spotlight. In fact, he would rather keep living a status-quo lifestyle.

But Greinke knew he needed to acknowledge the Royals faithful that serenaded him with a standing ovation in what became a 5-2 win over the Yankees.

As he walked off the mound at Kauffman Stadium, Greinke was greeted with celebratory high-fives from his teammates. He entered the dugout and placed the game ball in his back pocket for safe keeping.

A short time later, Greinke came back out for a curtain call. It was a picturesque moment that Royals fans will remember for a long time.

“It was nice,” Greinke said. “A lot of people were here today, so that was good.”

Greinke has not publicly commented on whether he will retire in the offseason. If Sunday’s game was indeed the 20-year finale to a Hall of Fame career, the Royals sent him out a winner at home.

KC earned the 5-2 victory over the New York Yankees to finish the 2023 campaign at 56-106. They tied the franchise mark for most losses in a single season but avoided breaking it by winning Sunday. The Royals also had a late-season surge in which they won 10 of 11.

“Everything about all of it was great,” Greinke said of the finale. “These last couple of months were a lot better than the first. It’s been fun lately.”

Greinke earned his 225th career win and 66th with the Royals. He surpassed Hall of Famers Jim Bunting and Catfish Hunter for sole possession of 68th place on the MLB all-time wins list.

And he did it in vintage fashion.

Greinke allowed four hits and one run in five innings. He walked two batters and recorded two strikeouts.

In the first inning, Greinke worked around three consecutive hits. He induced Yankees designated hitter Kyle Higashioka into a double play. Later, he forced Yankees third baseman Isiah Kiner-Falefa to ground out.

From there, Greinke navigated calm waters. He retired 11 of his final 14 batters before giving way to the Royals’ bullpen.

“It’s very special,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “Like we have talked about, you don’t take any of this for granted: the opportunity to put this on (the Royals uniform) every day and go out there to do the best you can.”

Offensively, the Royals relied on the long ball. KC hit three early home runs to secure a five-run lead.

Royals outfielder Dairon Blanco finished 3-for-3 in the game. Five Royals recorded an RBI in the victory.

Yankees pitcher Michael King took the loss. New York scored two runs in the sixth inning but couldn’t overcome an early deficit.

KC finished the regular season with 33 victories at Kauffman Stadium.

“A lot of these guys in this clubhouse don’t have a lot of time in the big leagues,” Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. said. “I think the more you play this game, the more you learn and the more you get better.”

Missed previous games of the series?

Game 1: Royals win 12-5 over Yankees in series opener

Game 2: Royals fall 5-2 to Yankees and tie franchise record for most losses

Here are more notables from Sunday’s game:

Bobby Witt Jr. denied 50th stolen base

Witt turned in a historic weekend to close the year. He became the first Royals player to record a 30-30 season (30 homers and 30 stolen bases).

On Sunday, Witt looked to further etch his name in Major League Baseball history. Witt needed one stolen base to reach 50 steals for the 2023 season. The landmark steal would make him the fourth MLB player with a 30-50 season.

In the third inning, Witt ripped a single against King. He stepped on first base and attempted to steal in short succession.

However, Witt was picked off after a 1-2-4-1 rundown. He tried to advance to second base but was caught on the baseline. He reverted to first base and initially appeared to have made it safely.

Witt was ruled safe by first base umpire Carlos Torres. The Yankees challenged the play and the call was overturned by official review.

“I kind of missed my opportunity for sure,” Witt said. “That’s really it. I had a couple chances the past few days but came up short. I kind of (need) to go back to the drawing board at that point, and (it’s) motivation for next year and keep working.”

Royals blast three home runs against Yankees

The Royals provided Greinke with ample run support on Sunday. KC outfielders MJ Melendez, Edward Olivares and Dairon Blanco each hit home runs.

The solo homers all cleared the left-field wall. The additional runs helped the Royals preserve an early lead and put Greinke in line for a victory.

Olivares homered for the second time in the series. He also went deep in the Royals’ 12-5 victory in the series opener.

Meanwhile, Blanco hit his third home run of the season. He has not homered since Sept. 8 against the Toronto Blue Jays.

What’s next: The Royals finished 56-106 and have concluded regular-season play.