Moustakas, Young grieve with Volquez after father's death

Edinson Volquez, the 32-year-old journeyman who led the Kansas City Royals in innings pitched this season, made his first ever World Series start Tuesday at Kauffman Stadium.

Unbeknownst to him, his father, Daniel, wasn't able to watch his son pitch the most important game of his career, wherein he battled for six innings before his club outlasted the New York Mets, 5-4, in an epic 14-inning marathon.

Shortly before Edinson took the mound Tuesday evening, Daniel passed away in his native Dominican Republic at the age of 63 due to complications from a heart condition. At the behest of Edinson's wife, Roandry, however, the Royals didn't inform the veteran right-hander of his father's death until after his gutsy Game 1 performance.

"I mean, it's his first start in a World Series game, and his dad isn't watching," Yost said after the game, his voice cracking. "It was hard for me to know what I knew, and to see him compete the way that he competed. It's just hard."

Edinson, who heard the news from Roandry in Yost's office after the game, isn't the only Royals player to lose a parent this season. Connie Moustakas, the mother of Kansas City's popular third baseman, died of cancer in August. Chris Young, who earned the win in Game 1 after firing three innings of scoreless relief, lost his dad, Charles, only four weeks ago.

"I know the pain he's going through right now," said Young. "Certainly, he's in our thoughts and prayers."

"This is a family, and we respect each other's families," added Mike Moustakas. "This is one huge family, this organization, and when someone loses a family member, that takes priority over everything that happens. Baseball's baseball. But family, things that happen like that, that's something that is more important than baseball."

Throughout Tuesday's five-hour, nine-minute affair, Yost wanted to tell Edinson the news he had been hiding since roughly 90 minutes before game time, but recognized that "it wasn't my place."

"I don't think I've ever been through a year where you go through something like this," Yost said. "It's hard. I know how hard it was for Moose, and I know how hard it was for Chris. You see Eddie out there competing his butt off, and you just keep thinking about what's coming next."

The Royals expressed their most heartfelt condolences for Edinson and his family after their thrilling Game 1 victory. Frankly, though, the sentiment has been far too common in their clubhouse this season.

"I've never seen anything like it where you have three teammates lose a parent in a single season," right-hander Jeremy Guthrie said, "and all three have lost them while playing baseball. And they had to go out there and perform on the job."

Edinson didn't meet with the media after Game 1, but expressed far more in one brief text message to Alcides Escobar - the shortstop who plated the winning run in the bottom of the 14th - than he ever could've in a clubhouse scrum:

"Thank you for winning that game for me."

FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal reports Volquez has now departed for the Dominican Republic with his family, and will rejoin the club once the scene shifts to New York.