Dominic Smith hits walk-off grand slam as Braves beat Royals 6-2

Before a 3-2 pitch from Royals closer Carlos Samuel Estévez on Saturday night, Braves designated hitter Dominic Smith asked for time to compose himself. In the next few moments, he made Braves — and MLB — history.

Smith launched a fastball 386 feet into the cool March night for a walk-off grand slam, giving the Braves a 6-2 win over the Royals and a 2-0 start to the season. Smith’s swing capped a six-run ninth for the Braves, who were mostly listless offensively until that point — until Estévez was erratic and Smith heroic.

“I knew how big the situation was,” Smith said. “I really wanted to understand my plan, which was get a pitch in the center of the plate and put a really good swing on it. I was very fortunate to do that.”

Smith became the first player in MLB history to hit a walk-off grand slam in his team debut (he didn’t play during the Braves’ 6-0 win Friday). He is also the second player in Braves history to hit a walk-off home run in his first game with the club, joining Bobby Ávila, who hit a two-run walk-off on July 22, 1959, against the Reds.

In his 10th season in the majors, Smith spent his first six pro seasons with the Mets and joked he had become accustomed to being on the other side of late-game dramatics against the Braves.

“At the end of the day, I just wanna thank my teammates. They did the hard part. They set me up really nicely,” Smith said. “They worked Estévez, and at that point, I don’t wanna say it’s a little bit easier on me, but they set up the table really nicely, and I just tried not to do too much. Just worked out right there.”

The Braves (2-0) had been blanked by Royals pitching all night, first by Michael Wacha, then by relievers Matt Strahm and Lucas Erceg. But then Estévez (0-1) couldn’t find the strike zone, and his 91 mph fastball wasn’t fooling anyone.

A walk to Drake Baldwin and a Matt Olson single started the rally. Mike Yastrzemski’s one-out single to center made it 2-1. Ozzie Albies walked, then Michael Harris II lined an RBI single off Estévez’s leg, tying the game.

Smith got ahead 2-0 before fouling off a pitch and taking a second strike. He asked for a timeout, took a deep breath, stepped in and unloaded on a belt-high fastball.

“You see it building,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said of the rally. “I’ve seen it a lot here over the last nine years, some late-inning dramatics, especially at home. I knew the guys were capable. And the vibe was good. The vibe was still good even though we weren’t scoring. Credit to our guys, man, for continuing to compete.”

Smith’s homer was the first walk-off grand slam for the Braves since Brooks Conrad hit one May 20, 2010, against the Reds. It was also the first full-count, walk-off homer in franchise history and second career walk-off homer for Smith.

The feat came long after Braves starter Reynaldo López gave the Braves six scoreless innings. He allowed a solo home run to Royals catcher Salvador Perez to start the seventh.