Witt Jr.'s Three-Run Blast Breaks Open a Tied Game in KC
Bobby Witt Jr. crushed a 394-foot, three-run homer to left center in the fifth inning to blow a tied game wide open, and Kansas City held on to beat Arizona 5-2. The win probability swung from 64% to 89% on that single swing of the bat — the kind of moment that makes a September game feel decisive.
The early innings belonged to Kansas City's baserunning chaos, and Arizona's catcher paid the price. In the second, Rave scored on a throwing error by McCann, then — remarkably — scored again on a second throwing error by McCann in the same frame, with Isbel advancing to second both times. Two runs, zero hits required. It looked like a gift, but KC took it and ran. Jensen then made it 2-0 in the third with a solo shot to right center that traveled 416 feet, and Arizona's deficit was starting to feel real.
The Diamondbacks didn't fold. Nolan Arenado launched a 430-foot solo homer to left in the fourth to get Arizona on the board, and in the fifth, Ketel Marte singled to left to score Lawlar and knot the game at 2-2. Suddenly the momentum — or what looked like momentum — had shifted entirely. Michael Soroka had already exited after four innings and 3 earned runs, and Zac Gallen was in to stabilize things. Arizona had clawed back from a two-run hole and appeared to have the game exactly where it wanted it.
Then Witt Jr. ended the conversation. With Collins and Jensen on base in the bottom of the fifth, he drove a 394-foot shot to left center that scored all three and pushed Kansas City to a 5-2 lead that Arizona never threatened again. The win probability swung from 64% to 89% on that one at-bat — a 25-point lurch that effectively closed the book on the Diamondbacks' comeback bid. Witt Jr. finished 2-for-4 with a homer, 3 RBI, and a run scored. Jensen, who homered earlier, crossed the plate twice. On the pitching side, Daniel Lynch IV gave Kansas City five innings of work, allowing 2 earned runs on 4 hits with 3 strikeouts — not dominant, but enough to keep the Royals in front until the offense took over. The story of the night was Arizona's inability to sustain its fifth-inning rally: Lawlar went 2-for-4 and scored, Arenado hit the ball 430 feet, and it still wasn't enough once Witt Jr. stepped to the plate with runners on.