Fun Fact: Only one team wins the World Series every year. Which means 29 teams don’t win the final game of the year which according to Moneyball means their season didn’t fucking matter. When a team gets eliminated from winning the World Series I’ll do a profile of their season.
Today’s Team….Kansas City Royals
How Did They Get Eliminated
It was a rough day for the AL Central on September 21st as the Tigers, Guardians and Royals would all lose. But it was worst for the Royals who with the loss meant they could no longer win a division that the Tigers were actively trying to give away.
They would avoid full elimination on the same day because the Astros would continue to give away the AL West to the Mariners and would get walloped on Sunday Night Baseball. Kansas City would be eliminated when the Guardians beat the Tigers and pushed the Tigers down into the final Wild Card Spot.
What Do I Know About This Team Because I Only Follow the Brewers
The Royals came to Milwaukee for the Brewers’ home opener and my wife and I went to the game.
Opening Day in Milwaukee is like St. Patrick’s Day or New Year’s Eve. You get customers that you never get any other time of the year. Everyone gets way too drunk and the reason that you are celebrating isn’t even happening.
My wife and I have been to a number of Opening Days and on multiple occasions the people sitting next to us were there for maybe an inning or two, and then they weren’t seen the rest of the game. And this isn’t like, “oh we are down so let’s try to beat the traffic.” It’s like, “Hey we saw an inning, let's walk around and spend $100 on beer.”
This year during the Opening Day lineups where they announce every single person who works in the dugout or clubhouse for the team the guy next to me, who was a Brewers fan, did an inappropriate hand gesture for every single person that was introduced. Almost to say, “who cares, ego stroke.” He did this for every person and thought he was hilarious. He was there for the first inning and I never saw him again.
The people who go to Opening Day are excited because they got to take the day off to get drunk at 10:30 AM, and will be the people who will be complaining about a bullpen decision in mid-May. “I don’t care if our closer has pitched 4 straight days, he needs to be in there for a 5th!!!!!!!!! Fire (insert managers name)
Opening Day is kind of annoying but it is fun to be at the first game when hope is at its highest. ANd for the Brewers when they played the Royals, hope was not high at all. The Royals would smoke the Brewers on Opening but then lose the next two games.
Bobby Witt Jr. is an awesome shortstop that I wish I knew a lot more about. Salvador Perez is still playing and crushing baseballs which is always fun to see.
I totally forgot that the Royals made the playoffs last year. I watched a game between the Tigers and the Royals in Kansas City and it was a cool atmosphere and the Royals pulled out the victory which unfortunately was their only win in that series.
So Now That I’ve Actually Done Some Research What Happened to this Team
The Royals were basically a .500 team through the first 2 months of the season but then June hit and they went 8-18 and found themselves 14 games out of first place heading into July. However, they were still only 4 games of the final Wild Card spot. Entering September they were 2.5 back of the final Wild Card Spot.
They’ve started September 7-10 which has been unfortunate because almost all the teams they were chasing for that final Wild Card spot have also struggled in September. The Tigers are 5-10 in September (something Cleveland has been taking advantage of), Houston is 8-8 and and has fallen behind the white-hot Mariners. Even the Red Sox have been 7-8. So plenty of opportunity to make up some ground but unfortunately are 5 back for the final spot with 8 games to go.
At this point they have scored as many runs as they have given up which puts them right at the .500 record that they have.
The Royals are last in the AL in Home Runs hit and runs scored. They are the 3rd worst scoring team in the entire league. They also are not patient at the plate as they have walked the least in the AL and are the 2nd worst team at taking free passes. But even though they aren’t walking they are at least putting the ball in play and have struck out the least in the majors.
Did Anything Go Right For This Team
They have the 6th best team ERA in the league and are one of the best teams at preventing runs. So even though they aren’t scoring a lot of runs they aren’t giving up many runs either which has kept them within contention this long. Unfortunately, one of their all-stars, Kris Bubic sustained a rotator cuff injury and has been out since late July. Carlos Estevez was also an All-Star and leads the league in saves.
Salvador Perez and Vinnie Pasquatino each have 30 home runs on the season. Bobby Witt Jr. leads the team in hits and was an All-Star this year with Maikel Garcia and pitchers Carlos Estevez and Kris Bubic.
For the most part this team is the epitome of average. Which isn’t bad, but coming off of a playoff season you expect to be in a little bit better position.
Are They Going to Get Good Anytime Soon?
Their starting rotation is signed essentially through the next two seasons and it will be a veteran crew as well which should help take some of the stress off of any younger pitchers they bring in. And Carols Estevez still has one more year on his contract.
Offensively almost everyone is coming back. Witt Jr. is locked up until 2030 but has a contract that looks like an NFL contract. His salary keeps going up almost every year until 2030. Its almost like they structured his contract so that he can be traded to a team that can afford those salaries in the future.
Their farm system is ranked 25 and both of their top prospects in the top 100 are Catchers, which is good because Perez has one more year on his contract. But they don’t need to worry about their farm system now, they can run this team back and if they underperform they have some pieces they can trade away in order to build that farm system back up.
This team should be competing next year not just for a Wild Card spot but they could compete for the Division. Seeing the Tigers struggle and the Guardians coming out of nowhere there is opportunity for the Royals to make some moves and be a top team in the AL.
Just one postseason award.
Kyle Isabel is leading AL Centerfielders in fielding percentage so he should get some consideration for a Golden Glove.
Hey Grok, in 100 words summarize the 2025 Kansas City Royals. Please don't be racist.
The 2025 Kansas City Royals season saw the team continue to build on its promising 2024 playoff appearance. Led by star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., who had another sensational year, the Royals were competitive in the AL Central. Key offensive contributions came from Witt and Vinnie Pasquantino, while the pitching staff, anchored by Brady Singer and Cole Ragans, provided stability. Despite being in the hunt for a wild card spot for a good portion of the year, they finished with a respectable .500 record, ultimately falling short of the postseason. The season showcased a young core and a team poised for future success.
This is by far the most bland response I’ve gotten so far.
Did the Savannah Bananas Play at their Field?
They did! It came at a very interesting time because when the Bananas came to town the Royals had lost 10 straight home games and would only win 1 game at home all month.
The Royals weren’t selling out games up to this point either so packing the K for the Bananas is good to bring in a little more energy and remind the fans and the front office what an electric atmosphere is like.
Here’s one thing I wonder about Banana Ball. Is it going to help bring people back to these stadiums to see the professional teams play? Doing comedy for a long time there would always be weekends where there would be someone who was more of a name than an actual comedian. They might have a huge online following, they might have been a professional wrestler or some actor that tries comedy. Whatever it may be the club brings them in because they know it will sell out the weekend, but for the audience that doesn’t know about being at comedy clubs and the celebrity you saw wasn’t good, why would the no-name comedian coming to town a month or two later be better?
I wonder if that could be happening with the Banana Ball. Sure you got the entertainment but did that actually led to more people wanting to come back to watch your team? Maybe, but when the kid realizes there isn’t a guy on stilts he’s going to check out fast.
I hope that’s not the case but just something I’m wondering about.
Is there a baseball movie featuring this team that has dumb baseball logic I need to vent about?
I’m not finding one. IMDB says there is one called “The Royal” which is about a player who has a drug addiction. Doesn’t seem like a movie that has a ton of baseball in it, but it's a baseball move none-the-less. I’m not going to watch it, so who knows if it has baseball logic worth griping about.
How Will Your Team Do Next Year?
This team has a lot of guys coming back which means they can make a run for the AL Central. With Witt Jr. and Pasquatino anchoring the offense and a starting rotation solid they could make a good run next year. 91-71 and they win the AL Central.
Next on the Chopping Block
We have lot of potential as we get to the final 7 games of the season. Cardinals could be next, could be the Marlins, maybe even the Rangers. Who knows its the end of the season.