Royals Rumblings - News for May 23, 2024
The Royals may never lose again!
Yesterday’s win capped off a perfect homestand for the Royals:
The perfect homestand against Oakland and Detroit marks the second time this year that the Royals have run the table in homestands of six games or more. They went 7-0 at Kauffman Stadium versus the White Sox and Astros from April 4-11. The only other Royals team to have two perfect homestands of six games or more was the 1985 World Series championship club.
“I couldn’t be happier for these guys,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “They are putting in the work and their attitude has been tremendous. This is what you play for.”
This year’s team is improving on last year’s at a historic level:
Dating back to the expansion era, 91 teams have finished a season losing north of 100 games. The following season typically isn’t very kind to those teams, averaging a win total of just 69 games. Of the 91 teams, only 12 (13.8%) have produced a winning record the following season. Of those 12 teams, only one, the 2017 Twins, managed to reach the postseason. The largest win increase a team has seen after a 100-loss season was a 34-game difference by the 1962 Phillies.
While there’s still plenty of season remaining, the Royals are on pace to crush every team mentioned above. Kansas City is currently on pace to win 97 games in what would be a record 41-game improvement from last season. The most games any team has ever won following a 100-loss season is 87 by the 1967 Cubs and 1989 Orioles.
Going behind the scenes indicates that the Royals dropped the ball on the CBA prior to the April 2 vote:
From the Royals’ perspective, it’s fair to ask if negotiations were derailed because too many cooks were in the kitchen. In the end, more than a dozen groups were invited to the bargaining table. Yet, the CBA process provided the Royals with a path to respond in an authentic way to the community and move the city forward, said Gina Chiala, executive director of Kansas City-based Heartland Center for Jobs and Freedom. “The Royals left us with an all-or-nothing approach,” she said. “They thought that would work. Going forward we hope they acknowledge low-wage workers and tenants are important.” More specifically, the Royals were shown a great example of how a good community benefits agreement could curry favor with voters. Instead, the team missed a golden opportunity to uplift some of the city’s most vulnerable workers.
Philadelphia leads baseball in wins, but they’ve also played a comically easy schedule.
Elly De La Cruz continues improving, turning his potential into production.
The City of Oakland is selling its half of the Oakland Coliseum.
The Orioles were swept for the first time in over two years yesterday.
In spite of being the team giving out the aforementioned sweep, Dan Szymborski is bearish on the near-term outlook for the Cardinals.
Pittsburgh’s Paul Skenes is quickly becoming must-watch TV.
Mets left-handed pitcher Brooks Raley will undergo Tommy John surgery.
Milwaukee right-handed pitcher Joe Ross is headed to the IL with a back injury.
Cleveland right-handed pitcher Carlos Carrasco is headed to the IL with a neck injury.
San Diego second baseman Xander Bogaerts will miss at least two months with a shoulder injury.
It’s conference tournament week in college baseball.
Super regionals start tomorrow in the college softball tournament. I’m pulling for the Lady Vols.
TNT will air some college football games starting in 2026.
The Cowboys have been the least successful sports team in Dallas over the last 30 years.
Ranking the best car chases in movie history.
Tech companies are attempting to offset their carbon emissions by planting trees. The word “attempting” is doing a lot of heavy lifting here.
In a move that will surely be good for the company and media as a whole, the Washington Post will increase its use of AI.
Apple’s 100 Best Albums list was made specifically to spite you.
Your song of the day is Not Exactly by deadmau5.