The Royals had some hype buzzing around the team before this season. Many fans played it off though and thought that it was just typical preseason hopes. In the past few decades, that’s all that there has been, just hope. But this season, the Royals might actually have a chance at playoffs.
Playoffs, as a Royals fan is a dream. It has always been just that, not ever an actual reality. The Royals have the longest playoff drought of any team in all five major professional sports in America: 27 years.
27 years ago it was 1985 and the Royals not only made the playoffs, but they won it all and beat their in- state rival, the St. Louis Cardinals to win their first and only World Championship to this very day. In 1985 a movie ticket cost $2.75. In 1985 the cold war was still going on. And in 1985 Back to the Future was a brand new movie.
It’s been forever since the Royals have won a playoff game. To put it into perspective, 37 percent of Kansas City has only seen the Kansas City Royals be losers in their lifetime. The Royals were once recognized consistently as one of the best teams in baseball and I think it is time for this team to get back to their winning ways. Luckily for us, it appears that the players feel the same way.
The Royals started off by winning the cactus league in preseason. Of course, that doesn’t actually matter, but usually it is the most success the Royals have so it is worth noting. Next the Royals finished April with a very solid 14-10 record. This brought some more hope, but many Kansas City fans did not want to get their hearts broken again by this losing ball club.
As the month of May went on, it seemed like those fans were right. The Royals finished 8-20 in the month of May and it seemed as if the 2013 season would end like many others in the past 27 years. Even though many fans had given up, the players had not. The Royals fought through June going 16-11 improving them to a 38-42 record on the season.
Many Royals fans still didn’t want to go all in with this team quite yet, which was very understandable; there was a long way to go. The Royals showed up for the challenge though, and went 15-10 on the month improving their overall record to one game above .500 at 53-52. With a strong August this team is seriously in a playoff race. A Playoff Race, Kansas City!
The Royals were finally above .500 and Kansas City seems to finally be all in for this team. The fans have turned out to The K averaging nearly 10,000 more fans than usual with crowds around 30,000 consistently. Not only that, but KC has also been watching their Boys in Blue on TV and setting Royals game broadcast ratings records in the process.
As a true Royals fan all of my life, I know that it is tough rooting for this team. They have continually played bad baseball in the past, but let me tell you, this team is not like the rest. This team is like the winning Royals teams of the 80’s, and for the Royals to make the playoffs this team is going to need support from its city. Kansas City, this team is a playoff contender, like the Royals teams of the 80’s, so let’s support this team and attend games like Royals fans did in the 80’s. This team has more than just hype; it’s real.