Righetti High School alum and KC rookie Matt Sauer will have plenty of fans in Anaheim this weekend

ANAHEIM, Calif. - It is a special road trip for Kansas City Royals rookie pitcher Matt Sauer.

The 2017 Righetti High School graduate is back in California for a 4-game series in Anaheim.

"It feels amazing," said the 25-year old from Orcutt. "I mean, I grew up coming to Angel Stadium, grew up Angel fans. It's going to be a blessing to have a ton of family there to support me in everything. Hopefully I get in there a couple of games here."

Sauer did see action in game one of the series and the hard-throwing reliever finished up a 10-4 Royals win over the Angels.

Sauer allowed a run and struck out a batter as the Royals improved to 23-16 on the season.

"The team is rolling right now," said Sauer who has pitched 13.1 innings in relief so far. "It's awesome, we have a great atmosphere in the clubhouse, brought in a lot of veterans to help a lot of the younger guys like me."

Originally selected by the New York Yankees in the second round of the 2017 Major League Baseball Draft, the Royals acquired Sauer in December 2023 in the MLB Rule 5 Draft.

"I was blessed to have the opportunity when the Yankees took me," began Sauer. "I felt they did a great job of developing me into the man that I am today, and not just the baseball player. Then obviously coming over here getting an opportunity to pitch in the big leagues and realizing, hey, I'm one of the top guys now let's get going."

Sauer is living his dream and taking it all in during his rookie campaign.

"It's everything I've been working for," beamed Sauer. " It's been a blessing for me and my family and my wife. We're all so happy right now. We're having a blast. it's been fantastic, love Kansas City, t's been amazing."

The Royals play game two of their series with the Angels on Friday, 6:38 p.m.