Kansas City Royals 2015 season makes 2018 worth it
By David Hill
The Kansas City Royals have had a rough 2018 campaign. But their success in 2015 makes the pain of this season worth it.
2018 has been a trying season for the Kansas City Royals. After an excellent run where the Royals reached the World Series twice and took home the 2015 championship, this season has been a shock to the system. The Royals are 27-67 heading into Sunday, a distant 24 games out of first and in the basement of the AL Central.
This year will not be the only painful season. The Royals farm system had been stripped of their top prospects in 2015, leading to the acquisitions of Ben Zobrist and Johnny Cueto. Meanwhile, Kyle Zimmer and Bubba Starling, who the Royals kept, have not been able to become impact players. There is talent with players like Nick Pratto, Khalil Lee, and Seuly Matias, but they are still a long way away from the majors.
And yet, this is all worth it. The glory of 2015 will live on forever in the minds of Royals fans, as the team came back from being Madison Bumgerner’d during their improbable run the previous year. They led the Central from wire to wire, playing with a chip on their shoulder and a determination to erase those bad memories. In a lot of ways, Yordano Ventura‘s combativeness was a perfect representation of the Royals attitude that season.
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Then came the World Series. From Alcides Escobar hitting a leadoff inside the park home run on the very first pitch the Royals saw in Game one to Eric Hosmer‘s mad dash home to their ability to pressure the Mets into mistake after mistake, that journey was magical. Taking the championship back to Kansas City, and seeing the incredible outpouring and support from the city, made the pain of the previous 30 years worth it.
And now, the Royals are paying the price for that success. They do not have any real pitching prospects that are close, unless Trevor Oaks and/or Jason Adam count. Richard Lovelady could be a future piece of the bullpen, but he does not solve the rotation woes. It is not a surprise that the Royals loaded up on pitchers in the 2018 Draft.
In time, those players will find their way to the majors. The contracts given to the likes of Ian Kennedy and Jason Hammel in an attempt to keep their window open will be over. And then, in a few years, the Royals will be ready to take their place amongst baseball royalty once again.
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In the meantime, the losing will be painful. But it is worth it to see the Kansas City Royals win the World Series in 2015. And it will be worth it again in a few years when they come marching back.