Why Kansas City Royals closer Scott Barlow treasures his 50th career save in the majors
Kansas City Royals closer Scott Barlow still remembers his first MLB save. It was part of an infamous scuffle between the Royals and the Chicago White Sox. The game featured high emotion, ejections and a lot of drama.
In the 10th inning on April 17, 2019, Barlow took the mound with exuberance. It was his 11th career appearance and the Royals needed him in a big spot.
He faced a quartet of White Sox hitters in Yolmer Sanchez, Adam Engel, Leury Garcia and Daniel Palka. Barlow navigated the Chicago order with ease. He allowed a walk but induced two groundouts and a strikeout to end the game.
Four years later, Barlow was reminded of that euphoric feeling. With his father-in-law in attendance, the KC closer notched his 50th save in a game against the Colorado Rockies.
“The first one, I didn’t realize what was going on at first. It was obviously a lot of adrenaline,” Barlow said. “Yesterday, it was more relaxed and a lot more calmer. I didn’t actually know going into the game that it was going to be the 50th (save).”
Barlow might not have noticed the record initially, but it looked eerily similar to his first time closing the door in the ninth inning of a big-league game.
The Rockies collected two hits and forced Barlow into the stretch. Now a grizzled veteran, he calmly recorded three strikeouts to end the game. The Royals won 2-0 for their 18th victory of the year.
“I didn’t feel like I had to change too much,” Barlow said. “Just make quality pitches, and usually good things happen when you do that.”
This stoic mentality is far cry from earlier in his career. Barlow admitted that the game was too fast for him at times. He focused too heavily on each pitch instead of the desired result.
As a result, his failures became magnified. Barlow remembers serving up a home run to former MLB outfielder Jay Bruce early in his career — he’d replay that image in his mind and it affected him on the mound.
“It was actually on a changeup, believe it or not, which I don’t throw that much,” Barlow said. “That was an eye-opener because the changeup was probably the worst pitch I had in my arsenal.”
When Bruce deposited that pitch into the outfield seats, it served a dual purpose. It taught Barlow to accept failure and allowed him to grow.
“It was, ‘OK, maybe you should just stick with what you are most confident in,’” Barlow recalls telling himself. “’Just what you are convicted in, understanding and knowing yourself with what your limitations are.’”
Barlow has developed into a stalwart reliever in recent years. He recorded a career-high 24 saves in 2022 and has posted a 3.52 ERA this season. He has also maintained his closer role in a revamped bullpen that includes Taylor Clarke, Jose Cuas and Aroldis Chapman.
Barlow knows what kind of reliever he wants to be. His steady presence enables him to process the game at a slower pace. He is keen on consistency and diagnosing the swing pattern of opponents, and that has helped him gain the trust of teammates and Royals manager Matt Quatraro.
“Scotty is the model of consistency,” Quatraro said. “He gives up a hit or two hits and it’s like nothing happened. He is going to go back at you with his best stuff.”
Barlow tied Mike MacDougal with his special save against Colorado and now sits eighth on the franchise’s all-time list. He’s proven he can handle the magnitude of the game’s biggest moments and looks forward to the next achievements in his career.
“It’s really cool,” Barlow said. “Milestones are really cool to hit especially with the fathers’ trip. I had all the family here to celebrate.”
