How Royals’ Salvador Perez and Hunter Renfroe fought their way to career milestones

Hunter Renfroe knew he still had a long way to go.

The Kansas City Royals outfielder recorded his 500th career RBI in the third inning against the Philadelphia Phillies, hitting a two-run home run to help the Royals to a 7-4 victory Friday night at Kauffman Stadium.

When asked about the milestone in his career, Renfroe joked that he is still far behind his teammate Salvador Perez.

“I’m about 400 (RBIs) behind Sal, so that’s pretty tough,” Renfroe joked.

Nevertheless, Renfroe was happy about this special moment. He led the Royals’ offense together with Perez, who also scored his 900th career RBI on Friday.

“It’s just a blessing to be able to be in this league long enough to be able to do this,” Renfroe said. “I’m really blessed and really honored to be a part of this team and a part of the MLB.”

Renfroe became the 68th active player to surpass 500 RBIs in his career, finishing 1-for-2 with two walks and two RBIs.

“If (Renfroe) plays well, it adds a lot of length to our lineup,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “… He’s got tremendous power. We know that, and he’s had that for a long time. That really gives us a boost if he’s going to drive the ball like that.”

This boost also supports Perez in the middle of the lineup.

Perez finished the game 2-for-4 with three RBIs. He hit a two-run home run that landed in the fountain well beyond the left-center field boundary.

In addition, Perez became the fourth Royal to reach 900 RBIs in his career, joining George Brett (1,596), Hal McRae (1,012) and Amos Otis (992).

Perez is also the 13th active player with 900 or more RBIs.

“I thank God for keeping me healthy and I tried to do my job,” Perez said. “I love playing baseball and you know that. So hopefully many more (RBIs).”

Several Royals marveled at Perez’s milestone. First baseman Vinnie Pasquantino, who has developed into an RBI machine this season, praised the respect opposing teams show when Perez enters the batter’s box.

“It’s just unbelievable,” Pasquantino said. “His joy in the game is unmatched. He’s great and he’s the leader of this team for a reason. He’s the captain for a reason and you can’t say enough good things about him.”

This season, Perez ranks eighth in the majors with 88 RBIs. He hopes to achieve his second season with 100 or more RBIs.

The last time he exceeded the benchmark was in the 2021 season, when he reached 121.

“I mean, the number is one thing, but I don’t think the public or myself understand how many that is and how hard that is,” Quatraro said. “…For him to have been that good for that long and to have achieved those numbers is really remarkable. It’s really cool that he’s done that here as well.”

The Royals are the only team to have three players with 85 or more RBIs this year. Along with superstar Bobby Witt Jr., Pasquantino and Perez are on pace to reach 100 RBIs this season.

If the trio can reach the benchmark, they will be the third team in Royals history to do so, the last time being in 2000 when Jermaine Dye, Joe Randa and Mike Sweeney each had over 100 RBIs.

“It means something to me, but I’m not going to change anything,” Pasquantino said. “You know, I had a couple of opportunities tonight that I didn’t take advantage of. I’d like to take advantage of that and score a few more runs, not necessarily to get to 100. But that would be a really cool number.”