Inside the tense moments as Kansas City Royals star Bobby Witt Jr. chased history

A loud chorus of boos rained down from the rafters at Kauffman Stadium.

The Royals faithful were not happy. In fact, there was extreme agitation among the Kansas City faithful after superstar Bobby Witt Jr. was denied a chance to hit for his first career cycle.

What’s worse: Arizona Diamondbacks reliever Humberto Castellanos drilled Witt with a pitch.

Let’s set the scene.

In the sixth inning, Witt was just a single away from history. He had already hurdled the toughest obstacles in his first three at-bats, hitting a home run, a triple and a double. So Royals fans were understandably excited to see the All-Star shortstop at the plate for his fourth at-bat of the evening with only a base hit to go.

Castellanos had just come into the game — a game the Royals would go on to win 10-4.

So there it was, the sixth inning, and Witt took a 91.7 mph sinker that ran inside and hit him. As he ran to first base, several Royals were visibly upset. This included team captain Salvador Perez, who chirped at the Diamondbacks’ dugout.

“I’m going to have Junior’s back,” Perez said after the game.

Witt appreciated the support.

“It’s pretty special to have a teammate like him on your team because if anything like that happens, he is the first one up and the the first one there,” Witt said. “I don’t know if I want to mess with him.”

The Royals continued to score and were on their way to putting the game out of reach. However, the sixth-inning situation still loomed large. And an inning later, chaos erupted.

Royals reliever John Schreiber hit Diamondbacks catcher Gabriel Moreno with a pitch, prompting the umpiring crew to issue a warning to both teams.

That decision didn’t sit well with Arizona manager Torey Lovullo. He marched to home plate to have a few words with umpire Jordan Baker. Their fiery discussion got Lovullo tossed from the game.

During the commotion, Perez said, Lovullo called him over to hear the conversation. Perez said Lovullo wanted to abide by major-league rules and wasn’t looking for his pitcher to hit Witt in that situation.

Lovullo confirmed the conversation in his own postgame interview.

“I wanted Salvy to hear that and I wanted him to take it back to their dugout to make sure he understood that’s how I felt about the situation,” Lovullo said. “That’s how I feel about Bobby Witt Jr. and I would never endorse hitting another player. I would never, ever do that.”

At the same time, Lovullo indicated that he believed there was some intent on the part of the Royals.

“I felt like their pitcher should’ve got ejected on the spot as well,” Lovullo said.

Perez denied any intent. He said the Royals were not trying to hit Moreno.

“So, that’s why he called me and, you know, I was like I agree with him,” Perez said. “(John) Schreiber is a sinker guy, a slider guy. I don’t think we were trying to hit him. We weren’t trying to hit him.”

Cooler heads eventually prevailed on both sides. After the game, several Royals weighed in on the situation.

“It’s unfortunate and I definitely don’t think there is any ill will right there at all,” outfielder Hunter Renfroe said. “Bobby is close to the plate and the guy throws sinkers.

“I don’t think there is any ill will by any team right there, especially against Bobby. He is one of our superstars in the game and we don’t want to see him get hurt or anything like that.”

Royals manager Matt Quatraro agreed. He said it was unfortunate that a member of the Diamondbacks’ staff had talked to one of his players.

“It’s hard to see another team talking to your players,” Quatraro said. “That’s what was the most frustrating thing and I think that’s why it got out of hand.”

Witt is now 12-for-15 since the All-Star Break. He has collected three hits in four consecutive games and has led the Royals to a four-game winning streak.

“I don’t think there is anybody like that right now,” Perez said. “He is from another world. He is good and he prepares himself every day.”

Perez wanted Witt get the cycle. But he settled for a victory that has helped the Royals draw closer to the Cleveland Guardians in the American League Central standings. KC is just four games back now.

With a week to go in July, the Royals (56-45) have also now matched their win total from all of last season.

Perez believes Witt should be in the discussion for AL MVP. He even called him the best teammate he has ever played with.

“I think he is the MVP ...” Perez said. “This year, Junior is unbelievable, you know. We are going to see. Hopefully, he can continue that way.”

Witt has a case. He was named AL Player of the Week for the second time on Monday.

As for the in-game fireworks that exploded between the Royals and Diamondbacks on Monday, Perez seemed confident things will revert to normal as the series continues Tuesday.

“Especially the way they talked and the way we talked,” he said. “I think it’s over and I think it’s done. Nothing is going to happen and we just have fun and play some ball. Let compete against each other, both teams, and try to win the game.”