Category: Kansas City Monarchs

Monarchs blast their way into championship series with 14-2 win at Sioux City

KC sweeps South Division playoffs

The Kansas City Monarchs won the South Division championship series in only three games, beating the Sioux City Explorers 14-2 on Monday night.

The Monarchs now will go on to the American Association Championship Series. They will play either the Chicago Dogs or the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks, who are 1-1 in the North Division. Monday’s game between the Dogs and RedHawks was rained out.

The Monarchs got enough runs – six—in the first inning to win the game Monday, but they went on to get another six runs in the third and two more when Darnell Sweeney hit a home run in the eighth.

The bases were loaded in the first inning after Ryan Grotjohn walked and two Monarchs players, Sweeney and Casey Gillaspie, were hit by pitches. There were two outs when the first run was scored on a bases-loaded walk to Ibandel Isabel. Another run walked in, then Paulo Orlando hit a single to score two more. Alexis Olmeda hit a double to score the final two runs of the inning.

The Monarchs had 14 runs on 14 hits in the game, while Sioux City had two runs on seven hits.

Justin Donatella, Monarchs pitcher, got the win after six innings and five strikeouts.

The first two games of the American Association Championship Series will be away on Sept. 17 and 18.

Game 3 will be at home on Monday, Sept. 20, in Kansas City, Kansas. If needed, Game 4 will be at home on Tuesday, Sept. 21. Game 5, if needed, is scheduled Wednesday, Sept. 22.

Tickets to Monarchs home championship games are online at https://monarchsbaseball.com/postseason-2021/.

Willis powers Monarchs to Game 2 win

The Monarchs’ Colin Willis hit a grand slam on Saturday, Sept. 11, against the Sioux City Explorers. (Photo by John Ellis, Kansas City Monarchs)
The Monarchs’ Carlos Diaz was the winning pitcher in Saturday’s game against the Sioux City Explorers. (Photo by John Ellis, Kansas City Monarchs)

by Jack Johnson, Kansas City Monarchs

After blasting the Sioux City Explorers on Friday night, the Kansas City Monarchs followed up with a convincing 11-6 win in Game 2 Saturday at Legends Field in Kansas City, Kansas.

With the victory, Kansas City needs just one more win to advance to the American Association Championship series.

Much like Friday night’s game, the Monarchs’ offense got started early. Gaby Guerrero, who had four hits on Friday, ripped an RBI-triple to make it 1-0 in the bottom of the first.

Sioux City (0-2) managed to tie it with a run earned off Keyvius Sampson in the top of the second, but Kansas City rallied with four more runs in the bottom half. Two of those runs came on a Colin Willis homer out to home run hill in right field.

Taking a 5-1 lead, Sampson settled in. The right-hander worked through the first four innings and allowed just one run. However, former Monarch Nick Franklin punished Sampson in the fifth when he rocketed a three-run home run to make it a 6-4 ballgame.

One of the biggest moments of the game came with Carlos Diaz on the mound in the top of the sixth.

Clinging to a two-run lead, Diaz loaded the bases with nobody out. Fortunately for the Monarchs (2-0), the hard-throwing left-hander struck out the side to neutralize the threat. In the home half of the frame, Willis came through again and smacked a grand slam — putting the game out of reach.

Despite some runs off the bullpen late, Kansas City maintained its lead and picked up the second win, 11-6, in the best-of-five series.

The Monarchs have an off day Sunday before continuing the series at Sioux City on Monday. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. The game can be heard on the Monarchs Broadcast Network with the pre-game beginning at 6:35 p.m. and the video stream airing on aabaseball.tv.

Tickets to Monarchs playoff games can be purchased by calling 913-328-5618 or by visiting monarchsbaseball.com.

Isabel powers Monarchs in Game 1 playoff win

The Monarchs’ Ibandel Isabel rounded the bases after a home run on Friday night, during a playoff game at Legends Field in Kansas City, Kansas. The playoffs continue tonight at Legends Field. (Photo by John Ellis, Kansas City Monarchs)
The Monarchs’ Gaby Guerrero hit a home run on Friday night, during a playoff game at Legends Field in Kansas City, Kansas. (Photo by John Ellis, Kansas City Monarchs)

by Jack Johnson, Kansas City Monarchs

After a few days off, the Monarchs opened the postseason Friday night on a high note with a 11-2 win over the Sioux City Explorers (54-47) (0-1). It was Kansas City’s 70th win of the season.

It didn’t take long for the Monarchs to take the lead in Game 1 of the division championship series. Following a scoreless first from Matt Hall, Kansas City (70-31) (1-0) tacked on two runs on a double play ball and single by Casey Gillaspie.

The teams remained deadlocked until the bottom of the fifth inning. With a runner on, Gaby Guerrero pounded a two-run shot to open a 4-0 lead. In the ensuing inning, Ibandel Isabel rocked a solo homer to add even more insurance.

Hall, who was picked up in the final month of the season, got the win by tossing six innings of one-run ball. Jeremy Rhoades came on in relief and worked a scoreless frame.

In the bottom of the seventh, Kansas City put the game out of reach with five runs, including another home run by Isabel, to make it 11-1. The bullpen managed to close the door and give Kansas City a 1-0 lead in the series.

The Monarchs take on the Explorers in Game 2 of the series at 7 p.m. Saturday night at Legends Field in Kansas City, Kansas. The game can be heard on the Monarchs Broadcast Network with the pre-game broadcast beginning at 6:35 p.m. and the video stream airing on aabaseball.tv.

Tickets to Monarchs games can be purchased by calling 913-328-5618 or by visiting monarchsbaseball.com.

The Monarchs will hold a Sept. 11 tribute to first responders on Saturday. Live music will take place from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., and there will be pre-game skydivers. In addition, there will be post-game fireworks. Gates open at 5 p.m.