Kansas City Royals beat Angels 3-2 in ALDS opener off Mike Moustakas 11th inning home run

A GAME decided by the slimmest of margins came down to this — an 137km/pH fastball destined for the heart of the plate.

Kansas City Royals' Mike Moustakas celebrates his home run with Jarrod Dyson, during the 11th inning against the Los Angeles Angels in Game 1 of baseball's AL Division Series in Anaheim, Calif., Thursday, Oct. 2, 2014. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

A GAME decided by the slimmest of margins came down to this: An 137km/pH fastball destined for the heart of the plate. The barrel of Mike Moustakas’ bat slicing through the strike zone. A parabola that barely cleared the wall high above right field, high enough and deep enough to let the Kansas City Royals escape with a 3-2 victory in 11 innings over the Angels in the first game of the American League Division Series.

As the clock struck midnight back in Kansas City, Moustakas unleashed the drive of his life. His solo shot against Anaheim reliever Fernando Salas broke a five-inning stretch without a hit and broke the backs of the high-powered Angels. The Royals kept their hard-charging hosts, the best team in the American League, at bay all evening. Then they pounced with one swing by Moustakas. The final three outs belonged to closer Greg Holland, who flew from Asheville, N.C. earlier in the day. He had spent the previous day with his wife, Lacey, for the birth of their son, Nash Gregory. Then he traversed the country to complete the final stages of yet another epic Royals victory.

Moustakas watches his solo home run in the eleventh inning.

On Tuesday against Oakland, Kansas City exhibited its desperate best. Two days later the Royals conducted a clinic in their brand of nailbiting baseball: A commendable effort from the starting pitcher, outstanding protection from the defence and a mostly pitiable output from their hitters.

The offense supplied a few spurts of early-game life, and then disappeared. The club could not put a runner on base during the final four innings of regulation. They managed only three hits in all. They did not attempt to steal one base.

Yet the Royals’ defence was sleek and superb — and saved them on numerous occasions. Lorenzo Cain scraped the outfield wall to steal one out and laid out in the grass to snag another. Omar Infante scooped grounders with his bare hand. In the sixth inning, as Ned Yost gambled on a fading Jason Vargas, Nori Aoki erased a potential extra-base hit from Angels second baseman Howie Kendrick.

Freese returns to the dugout after hitting a solo home run.

Vargas limited the Angels to a pair of solo homers through five innings. He faded in the sixth during his third turn through their order. Kole Calhoun smacked a single. As Kelvin Herrera warmed in the bullpen, Vargas jammed superstar outfielder Mike Trout with a fastball for a lazy fly out. But a walk to Albert Pujols loaded the bases, and Yost ambled to the mound.

The next move appeared automatic. Yost zagged when he was expected to zig. He left Vargas on the mound to face Howie Kendrick, a right-handed batter. Kendrick crushed a drive to the right-field wall, where Aoki snatched the baseball just before his right cheek smashed into the wall.

Yost inserted Herrera into the seventh inning. His outing lasted five pitches, a lead-off walk to third baseman David Freese that spirited Yost and trainer Nick Kenney out of the dugout. Herrera left due to tightness in his right forearm. In came 21-year-old rookie Brandon Finnegan, who picked up two outs, then ceded the stage to relief ace Wade Davis.

It was the second time all season Davis pitched in the seventh. He made it memorable. C.J. Cron hammered a first-pitch fastball into right field, where Aoki took another circuitous route. He twisted and turned before catching the baseball as he hit the ground.

Aoki came up smiling. His dugout roared their approval, leaning over the railing to salute the comic stylings and clutch defence of their right fielder. He tipped his cap. As the Angels fans hurled jeers at him, Aoki tossed the ball into the stands and jogged off the field. Nothing to it.

The gems allowed a pitcher’s duel to stay deadlocked. Davis walked a pair in a fright-inducing eighth. Tim Collins grazed the shoelaces of backup infielder Gordon Beckham to start the ninth, but Collins and Jason Frasor combined to keep Angels off the board. Danny Duffy conquered shaky hands and the heart of the Anaheim order in the 10th.

The bullpen protected the deadlock on an evening when the Royals could not have been happier with the performance of their starter. During the past few days, pitching coach Dave Eiland counselled Vargas about keeping his balance on the mound and not putting excessive effort in his throws. These are subtle clues, simple keys, the telltale signs a pitcher requires to maintain his delivery. It is also advice Vargas did not follow all September. The Royals could not afford Vargas to pitch as he did last month, when he bumbled his way to a 9.00 ERA in his last four starts and a 5.89 ERA in his last seven. They opted for Vargas for the first game anyway. Team officials favoured his experience over fellow southpaw Duffy, and preferred him starting on the road over fellow veteran Jeremy Guthrie.

Norichika Aoki #23 makes a catch in the sixth inning.

The first pitch from Vargas elicited cheers from the crowd and a gasp from the Royals bench. Calhoun jumped on an 86-mph fastball and boomed a parabola to wall in centre field. Cain scaled the wall and flung his arm skyward. His glove intercepted the ball before it struck the Konica Minolta sign.

Instead of a lead-off hit for extra bases, Vargas had a quick out and room to breathe. He emitted a visible exhale on the mound, then set down Trout and Pujols to finish the inning.

On the mound for Anaheim was Jered Weaver, Vargas’ former teammate at Long Beach State and last season with the Angels. His arsenal is unique. Weaver stands 6-7 and attacks hitters with an 87-mph fastball that benefits from his crossfire arm action. He also flings sliders in the upper 70s and a curveball that dips down to 108km/pH.

The combination flummoxed Kansas City at the start. With two outs in the third, Weaver had faced the minimum. He picked off Nori Aoki to end the first and induced a double-play ball from Billy Butler in the second. Yet he exhibited caution with Moustakas, pounding pitches too far inside and issuing a two-out walk in the third.

Moustakas celebrates with teammates after defeating the Los Angeles Angels.

The Royals ran Oakland ragged on Tuesday. They swiped seven bases as they erased a four-run deficit. After Moustakas walked, Weaver appeared preoccupied with slowing the running game.

Moustakas had attempted one steal all season, but Weaver still threw over twice. Then he hung a 69-mph curveball and Escobar drove an RBI double into the left-field corner.

Vargas gave up the lead thanks to a tantalising change-up to catcher Chris Iannetta. Vargas fell behind and made a two-out mistake. Iannetta exacted one-run revenge with a solo shot.

To start the fifth, Alex Gordon energised his dugout by lacing a fastball into the gap between Trout and left fielder Josh Hamilton. Trout looked like he lost track of the ball’s flight, and allowed Gordon to race to second. He took third on a deep fly ball by Salvador Perez, which Hamilton caught moments before his back collided with the wall. A sacrifice fly by Omar Infante gave Kansas City their second lead of the night.

It was a fine example of run manufacturing, and one the Angels rendered moot in the first at-bat of the bottom of the inning. Vargas wanted to locate a 1-1 fastball near the hands of Freese. Instead, Freese, the 2011 playoff hero in St. Louis, extended his arms and tied the game with a line-drive homer to left.

Originally published as Kansas City Royals beat Angels 3-2 in ALDS opener off Mike Moustakas 11th inning home run