July 30, 2007
Here Come the Royals
The Kansas City Royals won their fourth game in a row yesterday and are now just 1/2 game out of fourth place in the AL Central. Consider that at 13 games back in the division they are the same distance behind Detroit that Oakland is behind LAnaheim, and only one game down in the loss column to the Athletics.
Since June 24th, the Royals own the best record in the American League and the second best in baseball:
Best records since and including June 24, 2007.
| Team | Record | WPCT |
| Cubs | 21-9 | .700 |
| Royals | 18-11 | .621 |
| Yankees | 20-13 | .606 |
| Mariners | 19-13 | .594 |
The Royals in that time score 164 runs and allowed 115. So they've actually underperformed their expected winning percentage of .670 (that's one win). They've scored all those runs without many home runs. They've hit sixteen in that time with Billy Butler leading the team with four.
26 July 2007: Kansas City Royals designated hitter Billy Butler (21) hits an RBI double during the 7th inning against the New York Yankees at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, MO.
Photo: Douglas Jones/Icon SMI
The Royals' opponents out homered them by ten during this stretch. They're not without power, however, as they've gone double happy. The Royals hit 68 doubles over these twenty nine games, better than two per game. They've also put themselves in plenty of bases loaded situations, going 13 for 26 with the sacks full, drawing five walks, a hit batter and one sac fly. Right now, the offense is clicking well.
On the pitching side, he bullpen's been the main strength, allowing a 2.57 ERA over this time, compared to the starter's 4.45. But even Gil Meche is 3-1 despite a 5.26 ERA over this span. If the team is scoring plenty of runs, pitchers can afford to allow more. So the starters don't last long, but so far, the bullpen's been up to the big workload.
So is this sustainable? It's really a batting average winning streak, as the difference between the offense's average (.288) and the opponents average (.260) explains most of the difference in runs scored. The Royals are still not drawing a lot of walks (although their .348 OBA over this time is good), nor are they hitting home runs. It strikes me the bullpen might not be able to handle the workload long term. But this is a start. Management has them one game down in the loss column to the Oakland Athletics, one of the best run organizations in baseball. They're no longer a team to dismiss. That's a big step in the right direction.
I think you just blew my mind.
The thing I love about this, is that it's in the latter half of the season....unlike the Royals fabulous winning ability in 2003. This could mean the team's players are progressing, rather than just starting hot and ready to tire out. It will also give them a bit of hope and excitement about next season (if they keep this up thru Sept), and the players should be driven...because they'll wonder what they could accomplish if they play all year at this level.