Kyle Zimmer achieved a MLB first in the Royals’ resilient performance over White Sox

The unofficial rule early last season for Kansas City Royals manager Mike Matheny stated that, whenever possible, Kyle Zimmer should enter the game with a clean slate.

No runners on. Definitely no runners in scoring position. No added stress for the right-handed former top draft pick with the high-velocity fastball still building his confidence back up after years of his body having failed him.

Over the course of last year’s shortened season, a healthy Zimmer gained the confidence of Matheny and the coaching staff and garnered higher leverage assignments.

There’s no truer sign of the trust Zimmer earned and the progress he has made than what happened Sunday. Zimmer recorded the first major-league save of his career in the Royals’ 4-3 extra-inning win over the Chicago White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field.

Of course, the extra-inning rule adopted by MLB last season requires each inning to start with a runner on second base with no outs and the pressure squarely on the reliever and the defense.

“Pretty special,” Matheny said of Zimmer’s first save. “You know, he came in and used his secondary pitches too. Was behind in the count, not afraid to throw the slider backdoor. Used the curveball. I thought he kept everybody off-balance. He threw strikes. To be able to throw strikes with more than just your fastball is important in a situation like that.”

Matheny and his staff knew ahead of time they’d need to keep a reliable option in their back pocket for the 10th inning.

They’d already played some of the biggest cards in their deck with Scott Barlow, Wade Davis, Josh Staumont and Greg Holland having helped get them to the point where they had a lead and were looking to shut the door.

Matheny’s criteria for the 10th-inning pitcher included an ability to control the running game, to field the position and to control the strike zone and work ahead in the count.

The Royals handed Zimmer, who had gotten loose early in the game with starter Mike Minor facing some trouble, a one-run lead and asked him to work around the automatic runner on second and record three outs to close out the victory.

Zimmer, who is still sporting a 0.00 ERA and a .053 batting average against through 6 1/3 innings this season, retired the side on 14 pitches.

“The win, especially, was so great for us,” Zimmer said. “Coming off a road trip, get a nice happy flight back home to Kansas City and try to keep that momentum going. It’s just a special clubhouse. So anytime we can pull out one against a division rival, it’s huge.”

Zimmer struck out White Sox veteran Adam Eaton on a 3-2 curveball for a called third strike. Eaton initially went up to the plate swinging, then squared and tried unsuccessfully to get a bunt down.

Getting the first out played a crucial role, mentally, for Zimmer in that situation.

“We have one out, so you know we’re one either weak contact or strikeout away from one pitch getting out of it and ending the game,” Zimmer said. “You just try to lock in and take it pitch-to-pitch, almost pretend like there’s nobody out there (on the bases). You’re just sort of attacking guys. Don’t try to do too much, just compete.”

Then he got Zack Collins to swing and miss at a 3-2 slider. The inning ended when Nick Madrigal beat an 0-1 slider harmlessly into the ground towards shortstop Nicky Lopez for the final out.

Last season, Zimmer recorded his first MLB win. That was a monumental benchmark for the 6-foot-3 San Francisco native drafted No. 5 overall in the 2012 MLB Draft.

He endured four surgeries over the course of six minor-league seasons leading into spring training of 2019.

He took the entire 2018 season to rehab and take part in the training program at Driveline Baseball, a method that uses biomechanical analysis, strength training, high-speed cameras, and throwing weighted balls.

Zimmer made his MLB debut in 2019, but battled command issues and was sent back to the minors. Last season, he showed more consistency.

Sunday’s save was the latest benchmark in his comeback story.

“It’s exciting. I’m not going to lie. It’s awesome,” Zimmer said of getting the save. “It’s a save for me, but that’s not possible (without) our other guys, the rest of our bullpen, if Mike doesn’t compete all day, our bullpen doesn’t shove and keep us in a situation where I have that opportunity. It’s a full-team effort. I was just lucky enough to be the last guy out there to get the last out.

“But personally, it is special. It’s something that I can share with my friends, family, teammates, all the people who have gotten me here and held me up through the really tough down times.”