The secondary pitches in Kelvin Herrera’s repertoire have prompted an uneven first year as the Royals’ closer. So on Thursday, as the reigning American League batting champion stood in the right-handed box, Herrera returned to the top weapon in his arsenal.
A 95-mile-per-hour fastball.
Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve was ready.
Altuve re-directed the pitch into the centerfield seats, a ninth-inning blast to spark Houston’s 6-1 victory in the series finale in front of 32,747 fans at Kauffman Stadium.
“Poor execution in the pitch,” Herrera said. “Got a lot of problems when I miss location there.