The value of being close to the Kansas City Royals
- Big Rich’s Small World
- Could other teams soon be looking up at the Royals?
Close is a funny thing. After last night’s win over the Houston Astros, the Royals are four-and-a-half games out of first place. They’re in fourth place in their division (the spot they’ve finished three of the last four years). But it’s June 21 and suddenly those four-and-a-half games and three other teams feel like a smaller high to climb. And that’s because the Royals feel close to turning it around, close to having something click, close to being a winner.
Close is contagious. A fan’s logic might go something like this …they’re a game-and-a-half behind the third-place Detroit Tigers … and only … a game-and-a-half away from being able to tie for the division if they sweep a three-game series. Even the Royals seem to believe if they can just keep it close, they’ll pull it out in the end. The team is 11-3 in its last 14 ball games decided by one run. With seven wins in their last 10 games, it’s easy to feel that if they could just stay close, maybe they could win this thing after all.
