Kansas City Royals first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino (9) watches his home run against the Baltimore Orioles during the eighth inning at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

Royals' Vinnie Pasquantino takes drastic measures to shake slump

By Kevin Henry | Last updated May 4, 2025 12:00 AM ET

With a rain delay in progress and a first-inning popout already on the books, Kansas City Royals first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino decided it was time to see if a shave would change his fortunes at the plate.

"I've been awful, and apparently it's mustache May," Pasquantino joked after losing most of his beard during the 57-minute rain delay and keeping his mustache. "I used eight razors. I cut my mole. I was bleeding a little bit, but I got it done."

Not only did Pasquantino get the shaving done, but he also connected on a 3-2 pitch from Baltimore Orioles reliever Seranthony Dominguez for a 422-foot home run that helped the Royals secure a 4-0 win on Saturday night at Camden Yards.

Before Saturday night, Pasquantino was 3-for-18 through four games of the Royals' current six-game road trip that ends Sunday in Baltimore. However, he's made the most of those hits and others, collecting 10 RBI in his last 14 games after Saturday's solo shot.

On cloud nine. pic.twitter.com/H7zARniD4h
— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) May 4, 2025

It doesn't mean the shaving slump-busting tactic was perfect, as Pasquantino struck out in the fourth inning with Jonathan India at second base. However, he'll take the end result as the Royals moved to 12-1 on the season when they score four or more runs.

Joining Pasquantino with homers on Saturday night were Cavan Biggio and Kyle Isbel, giving the Royals their first game of 2025 with three home runs and just their second with multiple homers in the same contest.

"That's what we need," Pasquantino said. "We need more contributions from the whole team. It's not a one-man issue. It's not a two-man issue. We have nine guys who need to be ready to go every night and tonight was a nice step in the right direction."

So, after the home run, will Pasquantino keep the mustache for now?

"I think I'm going to grow everything back out," he smiled. "I've been growing out for so like two months, and that's a little embarrassing."

All quotations obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

Kevin Henry

A member of the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA), Kevin Henry has been covering MLB and MiLB for nearly two decades. Those assignments have included All-Star Games and the MLB postseason, including the World Series. Based in the Denver area, Kevin calls Coors Field his home base, but travels throughout North America during the season to discover the best stories possible

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