ANAHEIM, Calif. — Mike Moustakas came home to Southern California in a big way Thursday night.
The Chatsworth native, playing in front of friends and family, homered in the 11th inning to give the Royals a 3-2 victory over the Angels in Game 1 of their ALDS at Angel Stadium.
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When asked if he’s more relaxed when he returns to his home territory, Moustakas responded: “I don’t know. Must be something in the water.”
Maybe it is. Moustakas made his major league debut at Angel Stadium in 2011. He hit his first major league home run there the very next day. “Sometimes you feel a little more comfortable in one place than another,” he said after Thursday night's win.
You wouldn’t expect to hear much cheering for a home run from the opposing team in extra innings, but Moustakas wasn’t kidding about his friends and family being in attendance. When asked how many, he replied, “Oh, a ton. I couldn’t even tell you how many (there) are.”
From the cheer that went up after he launched Fernando Salas' 85-mph changeup over the right-field wall, it sounded as though half of Chatsworth had made it out to support him. They couldn’t have picked a better night.
Mike Moustakas' homer sneaks over the wall. Angels right fielder Kole Calhoun watches. (Getty Images)
“As far as how big of a home run that is, that’s probably the biggest one I’ve ever hit so far,” Moustakas said.
Moustakas, known as "Moose" to his teammates, played for Chatsworth High from 2004 to 2007. He was named Baseball America's High School Player of the Year in '07 after batting .577. He passed on playing for USC after being drafted second overall by the Royals that June. Teammate Danny Duffy, who's from Goleta, California, was taken by the Royals in the third round of the same draft. They celebrated at a high school graduation ceremony for Southern California seniors at Disneyland, right down the street from Angel Stadium.
The past couple years haven't been easy for Moustakas, though. After struggling at the plate early this season, he was sent down to Triple-A Omaha in May for a two-week stint. At the time, Royals manager Ned Yost continued to praise Moustakas. "He's a guy that's going to help us win a championship," Yost said.
He's certainly off on the right foot.
Erin Faulk is a documentary filmmaker and writer based in the Los Angeles area, best known for a unique brand of storytelling on Twitter. Examples of her work have appeared on Slate, Gawker, Jezebel and other sites.