By Morris Phillips

The anxious Royals needed a win Wednesday night, but they also were looking for an emphatic showing to get even with the streaking Giants.

Thanks to a big sixth inning, they got both.

Salvador Perez’s two-double and Omar Infante’s home run highlighted a five-run explosion that broke a 2-2 tie and allowed the Royals to even the World Series at a game apiece.

With the series moving to San Francisco for three games, the Giants retain a slim advantage, but they also got a good example of how distasteful a return to Kauffman Stadium for Games 6 and 7 could be.

“We showed them that we have fight in us,” Billy Butler said.  “We feel confident going in there 1-1.”

“I hope that no one doubted us,” outfielder Lorenzo Cain said.  “Understand that we have a really good team.”

While the Royals showed fight, Giants’ reliever Hunter Strickland lost his cool and wanted to fight after allowing Perez’ double and Infante’s homer in a span of three pitches.  Strickland was one of four relievers to pitch in the sixth, when the Royals bunched a walk, three singles, a double and Infante’s home run into a once-in-30 years World Series rally for Kansas City.

Strickland’s immediate reaction as a visiting rookie in the face of sold out post-season crowd, was to berate himself with an audible yell.  Perez heard Strickland while rounding the bases and thought his menacing words were meant for him.  Their exchange may have been the most ridiculous sequence to precipitate a bench clearing standoff in recent World Series history.

“I don’t know if he thought I was yelling at him or not,” Strickland said. “I was frustrated with myself.  He must have thought I said something to him.”

“I don’t know what he said to me,” Perez said.

What was clearer was the performance of the Kansas City bullpen in comparison to San Francisco’s.  Three Royals’ relievers followed starter Yordano Ventura and allowed one hit in 3 1/3 innings while striking out six. Beyond Strickland’s latest meltdown, San Francisco’s bullpen wasn’t sharp. Tim Lincecum pitched well, but left with an injured back.  Billy Butler’s laser hit just past shortstop Brandon Crawford was thrown by reliever Jean Machi and allowed the Royals to take the lead for good.

And two remarkable streaks ended, one for each team, on Butler’s single against Machi.  The Giants’ relievers had retired all eight hitters they’d faced with runners in scoring position since the post-season began.  And the Royals had gone 17 at-bats without a hit with runners in scoring postion, despite winning three of four contests during that stretch.

The Giants started fast on Gregor Blanco’s home run to start the ball game.  But the Royals answered off Giants’ starter Jake Peavy with single runs in the first and second.  Peavy steadied after that, until he allowed the first two hitters in the sixth to reach.

Giants’ manager Bruce Bochy was questioned in the post-game press conference for allowing Peavy to face the heart of the Royals’ order for a third time.  The veteran pitcher has struggled in the post-season with a 7.05 ERA in eight career starts.  But Bochy stood by his decision, and instead pointed toward Friday night.

“It just got away from us there in the sixth… but you go home, and I think you take a split,” Bochy said.

The Giants have 39-year old Tim Hudson in Game 3, his first ever World Series appearance, in which he will face Kansas City’s Jeremy Guthrie.

NOTES: Both opening games of the Series were decided by at least five runs, the first and only time that’s happened besides the 1937 World Series in which the Yankees beat the Giants by seven runs in each of the first two games…  The Giants saw each of their nine starters get exactly one hit, the first time that’s happened in post-season history.