What a week Michael Massey has had! As posted, he made the jump to the Major Leagues with the Kansas City Royals.
Now on Saturday, he singled in his second (and third!) at-bat with the team.
I have been following the Royals news feeds like I have never have before. The Royals’ fan base have adopted the rallying cry “Let the kids play!”. This comes partially considering the controversy of ten Royals players unable to make the trip to Toronto because they were unvaccinated.
But mostly, it is because the Royals farm system is full of talent. In addition to Massey, we’re seeing players like Nick Pratto, Vinnie Pasquantino and others who have been tearing up AAA ball. With some seasoning, they could make a difference for the parent club.
This all plays into Michael Massey’s life-changing week.
A Twitter timeline of Massey’s week
While I was sure Massey was going to be called up this week, this was the first official word that it was going down. The Kansas City Royals issued a very official statement.
Massey’s former AAA team, the Omaha Storm Chasers posted a much more light-hearted post. As mentioned above, these five are all worth keeping an eye on.
On Friday, Massey made his first MLB appearance when he pinch hit for the Royals catcher. The Royals posted this:
Later, Illinois head coach Dan Hartleb posted this amazing photo. Many kids dream to be in this situation.
I’m so glad the Massey family was in Toronto to enjoy the moment.
…and Michael even spoke to the press after Friday’s game.
On Saturday, Michael got his first start with the Royals.
Massey’s first hit at the major league level!
Get that ball!
A little defensive work by Massey in his first game in the field
Finally, Michael spoke to the press after Saturday’s game about his journey so far. He gave a lot of the credit to his parents especially his father.
The Royals lost to Toronto 6-5 Saturday but it wasn’t for lack of effort by Massey. He went 2 for 4 and made several good plays in the field. The Royals will take on the Blue Jays Sunday at 11:05am CT.
While I don’t want Illinois Baseball Report which is dedicated to Illinois Baseball to transition to a Michael Massey one (especially with Draft day coming up). However for these few days, I really feel he deserves the attention. Illinois baseball doesn’t get a lot of MLB play.
Michael, make the most of your time in the majors. I would say “Good luck!” but I don’t think you really need it. Those of us at Illini Nation are all rooting for you!
What a great experience for a very nice young man. Remember good things always happen to good people who work hard. Congratulations Michael.