Matt Quatraro Has Message for Michael Wacha After Final Start

Pitcher Michael Wacha walked off the mound at Kauffman Stadium in the seventh inning on Saturday night to a standing ovation, and the Kansas City Royals put his big number up on the videoboard as he left.

Wacha finished the night with 200 2/3 innings, which leads the American League with one day left in the regular season, and it was the first 200-inning season of his career.

The only problem was the score, since the Cleveland Guardians beat Kansas City 11-5 and finished the night as division champions.

The Royals jumped on Cleveland starter Tanner Bibee for three runs in the first inning, with doubles from catcher Carter Jensen and right fielder Jac Caglianone leading the way.

The lead did not last long, because a fielding error by shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. opened a four-run second inning for Cleveland.

Catcher Patrick Bailey hit a two-run homer, and outfielder Steven Kwan's RBI triple gave the Guardians a 4-3 lead they never gave back.

Wacha worked 6 1/3 innings and allowed six runs, but only two of them were earned.

Bailey and shortstop Brayan Rocchio each hit two home runs, and Cleveland scored four more in the ninth.

The win, paired with a Chicago White Sox loss to Colorado, gave the Guardians their third straight AL Central title.

Seeing Cleveland celebrate a division title at Kauffman Stadium is never fun, but Wacha still gave the home crowd something to stand up for.

He made 32 starts this season, the most of his career, and he finished with a 3.32 ERA and 158 strikeouts, which tied his career high.

Manager Matt Quatraro wanted to talk about Wacha the teammate, not just the pitcher.

"He's one of the best teammates I've ever been around," Quatraro said after the game. "Professional, gives you everything he's got. I know he was frustrated with the results tonight, but you look up and he's out there in the seventh."

Kansas City has had a rough year on the mound, and the pitching has been a problem at times this month.

Wacha was the one starter the Royals could count on to go deep every fifth day, and he did it at 35 years old.

MLB.com reported that Wacha drew trade interest in July, and the Royals decided to keep him with two years of club control left.

There was plenty of debate about his future before the deadline, but that decision looks smart now.

According to MLB.com, several Kansas City starters are not expected back from injuries in time for Opening Day, so the 2027 rotation will lean on Wacha again.

He has also been in the corner of the young hitters around him, and he was praising two of them earlier this month.

The Royals are 68-93 and in last place in the AL Central, so this season is over in every way that counts.

Pitcher Daniel Lynch IV starts Sunday's finale against Cleveland at 2:10 p.m. Central, and then the offseason starts.

If next year is going to look any different, the Royals will need another season like this one from Wacha.