Royals ready (or not) for Tigers series, Kansas City's biggest in nearly 30 years
The people of Kansas City typically seem to be optimists, but not necessarily because of their sports teams. Talk to my father-in-law about pro football, and surely he'll quip, "Chiefs coming back? They've been saying that since the '70s."
The Kansas City Royals historically haven't inspired noticeably different feelings among baseball fans. Kansas City Star reporter Andy McCullough noted this when previewing the team's biggest series of the season — their biggest in nearly 30 seasons — a three-game set against the Detroit Tigers at Kauffman Stadium that begins Friday night.
The Royals trail the Tigers, heavy favorites before the season started, by just a half-game in the American League Central. They're in better shape for the wild card. The team put playoff tickets on sale Thursday. They're the constant talk of area barbers. People want to believe, but it has been since 1985 that the Royals made the playoffs and won the World Series, so...
From the Star:
The managerial tactics of Ned Yost occur under a microscope of criticism. A sense of pessimism pervades.
The family of Julie Bradford, a 34-year-old veterinarian from Kansas City, has held season tickets since the team’s stint in Municipal Stadium. Bradford can still recall the car-honking, flag-waving bedlam that engulfed Kauffman Stadium during the 1985 World Series.
With a two-game lead on Seattle in the AL wild-card standings, the Royals appear to occupy a steady foothold. ESPN placed their odds of making the playoffs at 84.9 percent on Thursday morning. Yet a lifetime spent watching a losing squad still left Bradford with anxiety heading into this weekend.
“I’m pretty nervous about it,” Bradford said. “I’m used to disappointment.”
That's good, because the Royals are 5-11 against the Tigers this season, including a recent series at Detroit where they dropped two of three.
General manager Dayton Moore's rebuilding project, eight years in the making, doesn't necessarily rest on this series alone. But next season's roster stands to be significantly different, with right-hander James Shields almost certain to leave via free agency, and slugger Billy Butler likely to be bought out of the final year of his contract. The Royals might not get a better chance to win than right now.
So these three games with the Tigers are kind of a big deal, and it starts with Justin Verlander vs. Jason Vargas tonight.
More MLB coverage at Yahoo Sports:
- - - - - - -
David Brown is an editor for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at rdbrown@yahoo-inc.com and follow him on Twitter!
