Michael Wacha, Vinnie Pasquantino help push Royals back to .500 in win vs. Nationals

Jaylon Thompson, The Kansas City Star on Aug 12, 2025

Published in Baseball

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Just beyond the left-field wall at Kauffman Stadium sits a State Farm sign inscribed with its iconic catchphrase: “Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.”

The insurance company is known to serve millions nationally. However, the Royals won’t be in the market for more coverage. They are quite comfortable with their in-house insurance provider this season.

His name is Michael Wacha.

Wacha delivered another sharp start Tuesday night against the Washington Nationals. He surrendered two runs in 5 2/3 innings as the Royals earned an 8-5 victory at home.

The Royals feel comfortable when Wacha is on the mound. Tuesday’s effort was the latest example of his veteran presence. He turned in his sixth consecutive start allowing two runs or fewer.

Wacha is a steady hand in the Royals’ rotation. He has held together the starting unit amid injuries to Cole Ragans, Kris Bubic and Michael Lorenzen. And he has done it behind strong peripheral numbers.

This season, Wacha has held opponents to a .216 average his first two times through a batting order. He excelled in that area once again Tuesday night. The Nationals registered a run on five hits and struck out three times during that span.

Washington found success against Wacha a third time. In the sixth inning, CJ Abrams hit a one-out triple and later scored after Bobby Witt Jr. dropped a pop-up in shallow center. The Nationals also drew two walks to knock Wacha out of the game.

While he didn’t produce a quality start, Wacha gave the Royals a chance to build an early lead and ultimately sustain it.

Vinnie Pasquantino led the offensive charge. He finished 2 for 3 with five RBIs, including a three-run homer in the third inning. Pasquantino drove a 93.1-mph fastball from Nationals left-handed pitcher Mitchell Parker 356 feet into the right-field bleachers.

It was his fifth home run against left-handers this season.

The Royals picked up Wacha, too. After Wacha surrendered both runs in the middle innings, Randal Grichuk and Jonathan India quickly extended the lead again. Grichuk hit an RBI double while India followed with a two-run homer in the sixth.

From there, the Royals held serve with their bullpen. KC relievers Sam Long, John Schreiber, Taylor Clarke and Lucas Erceg shut the door as the club improved to 60-60 overall.

The Nationals dropped to 47-72 this season. Abrams had two hits and an RBI while All-Star outfielder James Wood added an RBI double from the leadoff spot.

The Royals will go for the series sweep on Wednesday afternoon as they look to stay in American League Wild Card contention.

Pasquantino lights up scoreboard

Pasquantino had a good night at the office. He posted his third game this season with five or more RBIs to propel the Royals offense.

Each at-bat resulted in loud contact.

In the first inning, Pasquantino drove in Maikel Garcia with a sacrifice fly. The Royals manufactured the run thanks to smart baserunning from Garcia. He advanced to third base on Witt’s groundout to the pitcher’s mound.

Later, Pasquantino hit his 21st home run and followed that with an RBI double off the right-field wall in the seventh inning.

Pasquantino is now tied with Salvador Perez for most home runs on the team and leads the Royals with 76 RBIs this season.

What’s next?

The Royals conclude their midweek series with the Nationals on Wednesday afternoon. KC ace Seth Lugo (8-6, 3.46 ERA) will start opposite right-hander Jake Irvin (8-7, 4.90 ERA) at Kauffman Stadium. First pitch is set for 1:10 p.m. Central.