Kila Ka’aihue’s homer helps Kansas City Royals defeat Los Angeles Angels 2-1 – MLB Update
Kansas City Royals’ Kila Ka’aihue hit a huge 405-feet long homer to right-field to snatch a 2-1 close confrontation from rivals Los Angeles Angels at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City on Friday, April 1.
Kila made his first big league homer as he earned American League central franchise Kansas City Royals their first regular season triumph.
It was not an easy opportunity for him to smash as he himself stated the pitch was a fastball from Michael Kohn. Angels’ reliever Kohn replacing Jordan Walden tossed two strike-out pitches before he finally went for a grand slam.
Kohn seemed amazed of Kila’s ability to hammer the ball as he regarded the pitch perfect for a strike-out. Kila hit the ball brilliantly as it sailed into right-field.
"It was a fastball, called away and it caught too much of the middle of the plate and he put a good swing on it," He said. "You want to thrive in those pressure situations. Those are the spots you want to get put in."
"I was just trying to get a hit and start us off," Kila said. "I got a good pitch to hit, and that's it. Our team is playing really well. The emotions and confidence is high here."
Angels’ starter Dan Haren was impressive in his start allowing none until the fourth inning when he consumed his first run in four innings. He tossed 64 strike-out pitches of 103 over six innings and ended the inning with 1.29 ERA striking-out six without
any walks. Walden accompanied Haren making two strike-outs and allowed one walk in one inning.
Jeff Francis made an early comeback after receiving a homer from Howard Kendrick in the first inning. Francis then struck back with his fastballs, striking-out four batters over his seven innings and allowing just five hits. He received full support from
reliever Robinson Tejeda and closer Joakim Soria as both tossed one shut-out inning each, however could not manage any strike-out.
Royals might have earned a lead in the sixth inning but Angels’ catcher Vernon Wells surprised both teams along with all the spectators gathering a spectacular catch at left-field. Kansas took their revenge of yesterday's 4-2 defeat at the same venue.
The Royals put in a good performance as they managed to restrict the Angels’ offence from firing. The Angels struggled throughout the game, as they found it difficult to go after the Royals’ pitching line-up. The team will be looking to improve their performance
in their next match-up. It will be interesting to see how the Royals carry their winning momentum as the long season has only just begun.
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