As the Kansas City Royals are coming off the trade deadline, the team has currently won four of its last five games, but Saturday's victory against the Chicago White Sox featured a concerning moment. While the Royals wouldn't necessarily deal with an injury, first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino would have to leave the game due to a heat-related issue.
Pasquantino would strike out in the first inning and would leave the game after due to a heat-related illness to the point where he said after the contest that he “blacked out,” according to ESPN. The 27-year-old would speak more about how he was feeling around the time he left the game.
“I kind of blacked out,” Pasquantino said after the game. “I was kind of moving around weird because I was trying to figure out what was going on, I wasn't very comfortable, I basically couldn't slow my heart rate down, I think (manager Matt Quatraro) kind of hinted at it, but five seconds after I struck out, I puked all over the bathroom.”
Kansas City had to think on its feet and made a few changes after his absence, with left fielder Nick Loftin moving to first base and John Rave going to left and also taking Pasquantino's third spot in the batting lineup.
“I try to show up to the park every day and prepare the same way, whether I'm in there or not,” Rave said. “I had taken swings today and been moving around a little bit. It usually doesn't happen that early in the game. But I was ready to go.”
Royals' Vinnie Pasquantino on how the heat snuck up on him
With the Royals adding sluggers to the team in hopes of improving, there's no denying how crucial Pasquantino is for the team as he currently leads the ball club with 22 home runs (tied with Salvador Perez and 80 RBIs to go along with a .259 batting average. Still, Rave in his place would be huge as he had a home run in the bottom of the third inning and his next at-bat, scored from first base on a run, garnering the attention of manager Matt Quatraro.
“For him to score from first was absolutely (huge),” Quatraro said. “I don't think that Vinnie would have done that.”
As for Pasquantino, the heat-related illness doesn't appear to be serious, as the first baseman said he is ready to play, but will have to go through protocol.
“I prepared myself well for the game today,” Pasquantino said. “It just hit me. And I don't really know how to explain it. That's never happened to me before. I'm sure people are gonna want to (say), ‘Hey, drink some water or something.' I was hydrated going into the game, I was ready to rock, and it just snuck up on me. So we'll figure out what happened, and be better for it next time.”
Kansas City finishes the series against Chicago on Sunday afternoon.
