KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Vinnie Pasquantino provided all the power the Kansas City Royals needed on Sunday, launching two solo home runs to lift his squad to a 3-2 victory over the Cleveland Guardians in the regular-season finale at Kauffman Stadium.
The win snapped a three-game losing skid for the Royals (69-93), who wrapped up a tough September with just their seventh win of the month and secured a last-place finish in the AL Central.
Pasquantino broke a 1-all tie in the fifth inning with a majestic 434-foot blast to center field—his 16th homer of the year—off Guardians starter Austin Peterson. After Cleveland (85-77) tied the game again in the sixth on a 440-foot shot by Jo Adell, Pasquantino delivered the game-winner in the eighth with another solo shot off Peterson.
Kansas City jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the first inning courtesy of an RBI single from Salvador Perez, maintaining a trend that saw the Royals score in the opening frame in seven of their final 10 games.
On the mound, Nate Peterson picked up the win by recording two crucial outs in the eighth inning, while Lucas Erceg shut the door in the ninth for his 13th save of the season.
Playing just one day after clinching their third consecutive AL Central title, the Guardians deployed a makeshift lineup that rested several regular starters. Daniel Schneeman provided Cleveland’s other run with a leadoff home run in the third inning.
Despite the season-ending victory, the Royals finished the year with 13 fewer wins than their 82-80 campaign the previous season. Total attendance at Kauffman Stadium reached 1,504,231—averaging 18,802 fans per game, down more than 3,000 per contest from 2025.
