Billy McKinney stars as Yankees hold on to beat Royals

Here is a non-comprehensive list of the things the Kansas City Royals do not do particularly well:

1. Hit.

2. Pitch.

3. Win baseball games.

By comparison, here’s a list of things Billy McKinney did very well Friday night: Hit, field, win a baseball game.

With his team staring down the threat of irrelevancy, McKinney carried the Yankees in a way some of their better-known players often have failed to do this season — hitting a game-changing three-run homer and making two stellar defensive plays in centerfield as the Yankees beat the woeful Royals, 5-4, to snap a four-game losing streak.

McKinney, who came into the day having played only nine career games in center, made a diving grab for the third out of the third inning, hit a three-run shot in the fourth and made a leaping grab at the wall to help thwart what could have been a disastrous seventh.

If hitting is contagious, defense might be, too. McKinney’s was one of a few solid fielding efforts, the most notable being Anthony Volpe's heads-up play at shortstop to end the game.

“Everybody in here has been pushing each other hard,” McKinney said. “Everybody wants to win. That’s the end goal.”

The win couldn’t have come at a better time, even if the Yankees will need a lot more of them, and fast, to give the front office a reason to buy in at the Aug. 1 trade deadline. They entered the day in last place in the AL East, were four out of the last  wild-card spot with two teams in front of them and had lost nine of their last 11 games.

Not that it wasn’t stressful: Drew Waters led off the ninth with a single off Clay Holmes and stole second with one out. Second baseman Oswald Peraza backhanded a line drive by Maikel Garcia and nearly doubled Waters off second, but his dive into the bag was a split-second too late. Bobby Witt Jr. then hit a hard grounder into the hole at short. Volpe made the diving stop and had only one play: From the seat of his pants, he fired the ball to third baseman DJ LeMahieu. Waters was called safe, but an umpire review ruled that he was out, earning Holmes his 12th save.

“I knew it was going to be super-close,” Volpe said. “The ground ball [Witt] hit in his last at-bat [could have been] a double play and he beat that out easily. I knew I was going to have to be quick but then I saw him going, so I threw” to third.

In many respects, it was a must-win.

The Royals, who played to their level Friday, are the second-worst team in baseball, have the second-worst OPS in baseball and have the second-worst ERA in the American League. (It should be noted they’re only “second-worst” at everything because of the A’s — a team whose ownership hasn’t done much to outfit them with major-league talent.) 

The Yankees took a 1-0 lead in the second when Franchy Cordero drove Alec Marsh’s 1-and-1 slider  over the rightfield wall.

Clarke Schmidt continued his recent solid stretch, looking untouchable . . . for three innings. Garcia led off the fourth with a double and, two outs later, Schmidt hit MJ Melendez with a pitch. Michael Massey, who came into the day hitting .206, jumped on a hanging sweeper at the knees for a three-run homer to right — his first of two home runs in the game.

But McKinney, who stole a double from Kyle Isbel with a diving catch in the third, bailed out the Yankees again in the fourth. LeMahieu got it started with a two-out walk, Volpe singled and McKinney blasted a first-pitch curveball to right-center for a three-run homer, giving the Yankees a 4-3 lead. Gleyber Torres’ homer into the Yankees' bullpen in the fifth made it 5-3.

McKinney likely prevented more runs in the seventh when he leaped at the wall to reel back at least a double off the bat of Waters. The next two batters singled, but Michael King was able to squirm out of trouble by coaxing a forceout at second and striking out Salvador Perez.

“That was impressive,” Schmidt said. “I didn’t know he was a centerfielder like that. I guess that’s his true position now. To see him come up with two big plays right there and the big swing, it was an all-around night for him and it was fun to watch.”

The Royals drew to within 5-4 in the eighth when Massey homered against Tommy Kahnle.

It wasn’t pretty, but it was one small step toward trying to save a reeling season.

“I’ve always felt like I could play center,” McKinney said. “It’s not like I’m Byron Buxton out there tracking stuff down, but I think I can play it well enough . . . I’m here to help and fill in when the opportunity arises.”

It arose, and McKinney rose to the occasion when his team needed it most.

By Laura Albanese

laura.albanese@newsday.com@AlbaneseLaura

Laura Albanese is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. She's been covering MLB since 2014 after starting at Newsday as an intern seven years earlier.