The Kansas City Royals are still in the reckoning!

Greg Holland

It was recently mentioned to me by a fellow contributor that Royals Blue needed a positive piece about the Royals, and that I was just the right man for the job. Many of the recent articles have cast the boys in blue in a bad light, deservedly so. Being one of the more “optimistic” writers for this blog isn’t easy. Through 59 games, the Royals have offered very few reasons to stay optimistic, but I dug deep and compiled some information that will hopefully begin to quell the audible groan that has begun to sound in this city. So, the next time your blood starts to boil because of a blown save (rare) or Yost just did something that leaves you completely baffled (often), remember it’s a very long season. In fact, there are still 103 games left and a lot of positive things going on with the Royals. With that being said, let’s first begin with the (really) bad…..

As of June the 5th,this season through 59 games, the Royals are 28-31, 4.5 games out of first place and last in The American League Central. Last year through 59 games, the Royals were 27-32, not much of an improvement. the Royals are currently batting .252 as a team, 15th overall. Through 2031 at-bats,they have scored only 229 runs, 22nd overall, and they have an on-base percentage of just .305, 25th in the league. They are last in the home run department with only 26 long flies (blame Pedro Grifol, The Royals did). St. Louis has the second fewest homers with only 32. While The Royals have the fewest strikeouts in all of the majors, only the Orioles and the Diamondbacks have drawn fewer walks. But perhaps the most telling stat of the Royals struggling offense is their slugging percentage of .352. Only the Mets and the Padres have lower slugging percentages. Looking at these stats, you would expect the Royals to be 19.5 games out of the first heading into the second week of June, but amazingly they are only 4.5 games out thanks to Detroit tanking 5 in a row. Lucky? Yes, absolutely! Out of the race? No, absolutely not! So, are the Royals really as bad as their numbers reflect? Not as bad as you’d think. Now for the (sometimes really) good…

One of the main reasons the Royals are still with striking distance of first is their starting pitching has been outstanding this season (except for poor Aaron Brooks, his start was epically bad). Sure James Shields has stumbled a bit as of late, but the other pitchers have been there to pick him up. The starting pitchers have produced 34 quality starts and the explosive young arms of Danny Duffy and Yordano Ventura should give every Royals fan a reason to celebrate. Wade Davis is having a career year pitching in the 8th innings and Greg Holland is among the American League leaders with 16 saves. The Royals pitching is certainly a large part of why this team is still in the race, but let’s not forget other reason; the defense. Defensively, The Royals are among the best in the game. They have only committed 36 errors this season. Gordon, Escobar, Perez and Hosmer all have a legitimate chance of being all-stars as well as gold glovers. The addition of Infante has really shored up the infield and some of the double plays he and Escobar have turned have been mind boggling. Now that the bats are starting to warm up, having all of these components working together will make for a very exciting rest of the season.

Listen, I know that this was not the start that we the fans, and The Royals had in mind. My pre-season prediction of 93 wins seems a bit (a lot) overly optimistic, but the Royals are only 4.5 games out of first. It’s time for everyone to take a deep breath and remember that the baseball season is a long one. 103 games left leave plenty of time for improvement and excitement. Everyone keep calm. It’s way too early to hit the eject button.

Just a reminder for those of you living in the Kansas City area, this Friday through Monday, marks the last time Derek Jeter will play at Kauffman. On Monday, as a retirement gift, the Royals will be donating ten thousand dollars to the charity he created, Turn 2 Foundation.