AL wild card: Royals edge A's in 12 innings on Salvador Perez's walk-off

The Kansas City Royals and Oakland Athletics put the wild in wild card Tuesday night. At the end, Kansas City was going crazy once again, celebrating like they haven't in 29 years. The Royals won a five-hour, 12-inning game on Salvador Perez's walk-off single that went down the third-base line, just under the glove of A's third baseman Josh Donaldson.

The A's blew it three times — including a 7-3 lead in the eighth and ninth innings, and a 8-7 lead in the 12th. The Royals scored twice in the 12th to overthrow the A's and win 9-8. Now Kansas City will face the Angels in the ALDS, giving more life to their first playoff berth in 29 years.

• Salvador Perez found sweet redemption in the 12th. He was 0-5 in the game before that, including a crucial strikeout in the eighth inning that stopped a Royals rally.

• Eric Hosmer's 12th inning triple — just out of the reach of two Oakland outfielders — got the Royals going in the final inning. He eventually scored the tying run and finished the night with three hits.

• The Royals runners. We'd heard a lot about K.C.'s speed heading into the wild-card game, and it lived up to the hype. They stole seven bases, including three in their three-run, eighth-inning rally. Another swiped base helped them tie the game in the ninth.

• Brandon Finnegan, a Royals rookie relief pitcher, was making just his eighth MLB appearance and he did well on the big stage. Finnegan was drafted by the Royals in June and quickly advanced to the big leagues. The Royals gave him the ball in the 10th inning and he came out firing. He pitched 2 1/3 innings, striking out three batters while allowing just one hit and issuing one walk. The one walk turned into an Oakland run, but it was still a nice outing for a guy who was pitching in college a few months earlier.

• Brandon Moss, the All-Star A's slugger who slumped massively in the second half, was a one-man wrecking crew. He slugged two homers and knocked in five runs,. His first-inning blast put the A's up 2-0 and his sixth-inning three-run homer reclaimed the lead for Oakland. He hit two homers in August and September combined, so to rebound with two in a do-or-die game was huge.

• Alberto Callaspo, who came off the bench for the A's in the 12th inning and delivered a go-ahead RBI single to put Oakland ahead 8-7. He had three hits in 12 at-bats this season as a pinch-hitter, but none bigger than this one.

• Despite the win, Royals manager Ned Yost will be second-guessed for a while after one of his moves, maybe even 29 years. He took out starter James Shields in the sixth inning with two runners on and Moss and Josh Reddick coming up to bat. Yost chose to bring in rookie fireballer Yordano Ventura, who promptly gave up the three-run homer to Moss. Ventura was put in a tough situation for the first postseason appearance of his young career, and he did not rise to the occasion. At the very least, Yost could have picked a different reliever. The Royals' comeback will quiet a bit of the "Fire Ned Yost" talk, but you can bet some fans will never forgive him.

• Late-inning Oakland pitching. Put this in the "you had one job" category. The A's were up 7-3, going into the bottom of the eighth. Lester got tagged for three runs, then setup man Luke Gregerson came in and had a rough time, but eventually got the A's out of the inning with a 7-6 lead. Closer Sean Doolittle, usually a good bet for Oakland, gave up the tying run in the ninth. Not great for a team that was supposed to have one of the best bullpens in baseball.

Jarrod Dyson's steal of third base in the ninth inning — a gutsy call by the Royals that paid off. He was safe and allowed Nori Aoki to tie the game in the ninth with a long sac fly to right field.

The Royals overcoming Moss' five RBIs puts them in rare company historically:

Obviously, teams are now 62-2.

• The collapse of the A's. It mirrored their season, actually. They looked like they had the game locked down, then let it slip away when it mattered most. This one won't be easy to get over.

• The Royals speed. Moving forward, opponents will be game-planning for the Royals' runners.

• Playoff baseball. It's back. It's tense. It's a thrill to watch. No matter which team you were rooting for, Tuesday's game was one heck of a ride. Will other postseason games top this? Dunno, but we can't wait to find out.

The Royals advance to play the Los Angeles Angels in the ALDS. Game 1 is Thursday in Anaheim. First pitch is 9:07 p.m. ET. The Angels send Jered Weaver (18-9, 3.59 ERA) to the mound.

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Mike Oz is an editor for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at mikeozstew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @MikeOz