Not Too Shabby

After last night’s loss to the Yankees, I felt it was time for me to chime in again as the Royals seem to have fallen slightly back down to earth. After a scorching period that included going 17-6 in the month of August so far, they have now lost two games in a row for the first time in 26 days. As Ron from the movie Cedar Rapids might say, “NTS: Not too shabby.” 

This is clearly the most exciting time to be a Royals fan since 1985 or 1994 or 2003. Kansas City fans can now legitimately feel that the Royals will win every game and every series and even fight off Detroit to win the AL Central. Forget chasing paper, Jay-Z, we chasing a PENNANT!

Below are some notes as of late:

The Royals are 1.5 games ahead of Detroit. They will need to continue their winning ways in order to stay ahead. Teams like Detroit don’t just fold over, especially since the only chance for an AL Central team to make the playoffs appears to be winning the division as the two wild card berths look like they are going to two teams from the West. 

Kansas City is only one home run behind St. Louis for fewest in baseball. I would prefer to be ahead of the Cardinals in something so I hope Billy Butler and Josh Willingham and start cranking some bombs. They currently have 3 players with 15 home runs, which is nice but the rest of the team needs to step it up. 

Fangraphs has Alex Gordon at 5.6 Wins Against Replacement (WAR), which is 0.1 wins behind Mike Trout and Giancarlo Stanton for best in the MLB. While many people don’t care about WAR, it can be a useful stat, and usually those in the top 5 or so in WAR are included in discussions for MVP. So the Royals now have a legitimate MVP candidate. Gordon will also likely win his 4th straight Gold Glove this year. 

Every team in the American League is going to finish wayyyyyyy better than the worst team in the history of the American League. In case you never read my blog, the 2003 Detroit Tigers will forever remain the worst American League team in history with 119 losses. Just pathetic. Suck it Detroit. I hope you miss the playoffs and cry every day in October. 

The Royals went 12-13 in July and are 24-12 overall since the All Star Break. Sam Mellinger of the KC Star pointed out back in July that the Royals needed to win every series the rest of the season to have a chance of making the playoffs. They have basically done that so far, and hopefully the recent slide to mediocrity does not lead to a losing streak. The Royals play Minnesota next, and even though they are in last place in the AL Central, we all know how much the Royals can struggle against them. Defense and hitting will need to show up against the Twinkies.

The Royals were on national TV last night, will be on national TV tonight, and for the first time since 1996, will be on Sunday Night Baseball this coming Sunday. GIVE ME MORE NATIONAL TV FOR THE ROYALS!!!!! Very cool that they are getting national attention (including the Sports Illustrated cover below), and it is so crucial that they perform well. Everyone pray to God or Mohammed or whichever Hindu deities to which you ascribe to ensure that the Royals make Kansas City look good. I am tired of Kansas City only being known for BBQ and a Chiefs player committing suicide.  

Beat those Twins tonight!