Rojas turned a pinch-hit at-bat into a four-RBI night, and the Royals leaned on their bullpen to beat Cleveland for the second straight day.
Josh Rojas came off the bench to pinch hit in the sixth inning Saturday with the bases loaded and one out, and it turned into one of the best swings of his season.
He lined a single into left field that scored two runs, and two innings later he hit a two-run homer to right field.
The Kansas City Royals beat the Cleveland Guardians 8-3 at Progressive Field, their second straight win over Cleveland.
Cleveland scored first when Angel Martínez hit a two-run homer in the second inning.
The Royals answered in the fifth when Isaac Collins doubled in two runs to tie it at two, but everything changed in the sixth.
Kansas City sent ten batters to the plate, starting with a leadoff single from Bobby Witt Jr. and an RBI double from Salvador Perez that put the Royals ahead for good.
The rally kept rolling until Rojas capped it with his two-run single, making it 6-2, and his eighth-inning homer pushed the margin to 8-2 before Cleveland scored a run in the ninth.
Kansas City Keeps Finding Bench Depth
The Royals recalled Rojas from Omaha on Thursday, the corresponding move when Michael Massey landed on the injured list with a concussion, and all he has done since is deliver in big spots.
According to the Associated Press, Saturday was just the second four-RBI game of Rojas's career, with the only other one coming with Arizona back in 2022.
He came into the day hitting .229 with one home run in 32 games, so a four-RBI, two-hit night was not something anyone saw coming.
"This is baseball," Rojas said after the game, and after a night like that, it is hard to argue.
The bullpen made sure the lead held up.
Anthony Gose, who Kansas City selected from Omaha earlier this week, worked 1.2 scoreless innings and earned his first big league win since 2022.
He entered with a runner in scoring position and the Royals still trailing, and the pitching staff did not allow another hit until the ninth inning.
Gose had thrown just one scoreless inning before Saturday, and turning that into a win is exactly what Kansas City needs with a month left.
It has been that sort of season for this roster, from Bobby Witt Jr.'s All-Star season to a bench that keeps producing.
A Chance to Sweep Cleveland
Sunday's series finale at Progressive Field gives the Royals a shot at a sweep, something that looked unlikely a month ago.
Kansas City is off Monday before returning home to host the Miami Marlins on Tuesday at Kauffman Stadium.
The Royals have won nine of their last 10 games, and it is easy to forget how far some of these players have come.
Vinnie Pasquantino was still hunting for his swing back in May, and Saturday's group looks nothing like the one that started the season.
None of it erases the deep hole this team dug for itself, but it is a lot more fun to watch than the baseball Kansas City was playing a few months ago.
