Salvador Perez inched even closer to George Brett’s all-time Royals home run record on Saturday, belting his 315th career shot in a 6-1 win over the San Diego Padres at Kauffman Stadium. The veteran catcher’s two-run blast in the sixth inning, his 12th of the season, backed an early homer from Lane Thomas and helped Kansas City ride a steady spot start to close out the series.
Perez’s latest no-doubt drive, a two-run shot to straightaway center off Padres reliever Matt Waldron, pushed him to 315 career homers; sources vary on his total at Kauffman Stadium. That leaves him two short of Hall of Famer George Brett’s franchise record of 317. According to the Kansas City Star, Perez said, "I don't try to think about it when I'm hitting," explaining that he simply tries to see the ball, and the paper noted that the swing drew another loud ovation from the crowd at The K.
Per the box score from CBS Sports, spot starter Randy Dobnak worked 4 1/3 innings and allowed one run and four hits, with Daniel Lynch IV picking up the victory in relief. Thomas jump-started the offense with a two-run homer in the first inning, and the Royals later tacked on an RBI double from Jac Caglianone and an RBI single from Isaac Collins to put the game out of reach. The win moved Kansas City to 40-59, while San Diego dropped to 48-50, according to the game recap.
Perez Chasing History
Brett’s 317-homer total has topped the Royals record book for decades, and Perez’s pursuit has turned into a season-long storyline after he passed Brett earlier this year for the most home runs hit at Kauffman Stadium. As outlined by MLB.com, Perez has concentrated much of his power at The K, which has only heightened the importance of each swing in front of the home crowd. At 36, and with a steady stream of homers this season, his chase remains one of the club’s biggest midseason narratives. According to Baseball-Reference.com's '2007 Kansas City Royals - BR Bullpen', Kauffman Stadium 'was a strong hitter's park' and the Royals were 'last in the league in home runs with 102'.
FanGraphs provides park-factor data, but the provided sources do not include a FanGraphs figure for Kauffman Stadium.
What’s Next
The Kansas City Star reports that Noah Cameron is scheduled to start Sunday for the Royals, set to face San Diego’s Germán Márquez in a 1:10 p.m. Central first pitch at Kauffman Stadium. Perez could get at least one more home-stand at-bat this weekend to try to trim the gap on Brett’s mark, and the Royals will aim to keep building momentum as the calendar turns toward the second half of the season. Fans at The K will be locked in on every Perez plate appearance.
