KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- With a rash of injuries to his starting rotation, Royals manager Matt Quatraro put together a plan to rely exclusively on his bullpen when Kansas City played the Atlanta Braves in their series finale on Wednesday.
He never could have imagined nine relievers would execute it so perfectly, nor tie a major league record in the process.
But by the time struggling reliever Sam Long escaped a two-on, no-out jam by retiring three straight Braves in the top of the 10th, and Salvador Perez slapped a single to right to score MJ Melendez in the bottom half and give the Royals a 1-0 win, they had done exactly that: tied a big league record by using nine total pitchers in a shutout.