KANSAS CITY (AP) - Three hits and two RBI were not all Chris Getz delievred in Kansas City's 5-4 victory over the Los Angeles on Saturday afternoon.
The second baseman also saved a run in the eighth with a great relay throw to the plate that cut down Alberto Callaspo, who was trying to score from second on a double by Erick Aybar that looked as if it might be caught.
Getz's play doesn't show up in the boxscore, but little things like that often spell the difference in a tight game.
"By the time I got the ball, I saw he was just rounding third base. I threw it," Getz said. "It was a decent throw but (catcher Matt) Treanor stayed in there and made a good play."
Getz drove in the go-ahead run in the bottom of the eighth off Kevin Jepsen (0-1) as the Royals rallied.
Rookie Aaron Crow (1-0) pitched 12â„3 innings for the victory, his first as a major leaguer. It was the third straight day the Angels bullpen had faltered.
Crow, from around Topeka, Kan., and a former Big 12 Conference star at Missouri, has thrown three innings in this series and not allowed a run while striking out five.
"I've felt comfortable out there," Crow said. "I had a couple of balls hit hard but I was fortunate they made a great play at the plate. I got pretty lucky out there. We played great defense today."
The Angels loaded the bases with one out in the seventh but Crow came out of the bullpen and struck out Hunter on a 96 mph fastball and got Wells to ground into a forceout.
"It was awesome," he said. "It may not have looked like it, but I was nervous out there."
Jepson has had two rough outings in this series. The Angels bullpen has not looked steady in any of the three games.
"Jep is a big part of our bullpen," Angels catcher Bobby Wilson said. "He's going to be all right. I know that catching him. He'll get his stuff going right. He was in the zone. Those guys took a couple of good swings."
The Royals trailed 4-3 in the eighth when they put runners on first and second with one out. Wilson Betemit hit a sharp grounder up the middle and Aybar made a great diving stop and, on his knees, the shortstop flipped the ball to second baseman Maicer Izturis for the force. But Izturis' throw to first was high, taking away a chance at an inning-ending double play. Treanor's RBI single tied it at 4 and Getz followed with his second RBI single.
Torii Hunter, who also homered in the Angels' 4-2 victory Thursday, hit a 3-1 pitch 437 feet over the fence in right off starter Kyle Davies for a 1-0 lead in the fourth.
With one out in the sixth, Bobby Abreu singled and Hunter walked and Vernon Wells hit an RBI single, making it 2-all. Callaspo lined an RBI single into right, bringing Kanekoa Texeira out of the bullpen.
Aybar hit a potential double-play grounder to shortstop Alcides Escobar but the throw to first was high as Wells scored the third run of the inning.
The Royals made it 4-3 with a weird sequence of pitches in the bottom of the sixth. Jeff Francoeur bailed out when Ervin Santana's pitch sailed right for his head, but the ball bounced off his bat for a foul. On the next delivery, Francoeur struck out but the ball sailed away from the plate and Billy Butler scored on the wild pitch.