The Kansas City Royals lost their first game after the All-Star break 8-4 to the Minnesota Twins. The Royals decided to start the second half of the season with starter Bruce Chen on the mound and putting the Opening Day starter Luke Hochevar #2 in the rotation. The game started well for the KC Royals because the Twins gave them two runs in the first inning off of two errors. It looked good for the Royals as they took a 3-0 lead into the 5th inning, but then the Twins tagged Bruce Chen for four runs in the 5th to take the lead and never look back. The old Royals were back as they squandered a great chance to take game one of the series. Later in the game reliever Blake Wood came in and walked three batters and hit another giving up four runs in the inning. Even though the Twins started off the game poorly, they did turn it around but the Royals pitching staff helped them to get back on track.

The part of the Kansas City Royals roster that has hurt them the most, not just this year but for quite some time, has been the pitching staff. The good news for the Royals is that they have several young relievers that are looking great. The problem is that the starters are so bad that they can’t get a lead to the bullpen or their two time All-Star closer Joakim Soria. The hitting is showing promise as they are 4th in the league in batting average and 11th in runs scored. Young guns Eric Hosmer and Mike Moustakas have Royals fans looking forward to the future and what could be for the team. Alex Gordon is also having his best year and the addition of Melky Cabrera and Jeff Francoeur give the Royals three strong young outfielders.

The Royals showed a glimpse of what could be early in the season, starting 20-17, with a good start. But since then they have gone 17-38 and went from 2nd in the division to dead last with the worst record in the AL. They need to get better before the season is out if they want to avoid another 100 loss season, which unfortunately is not that uncommon in Kansas City. The Royals are still the youngest team in the majors, though, and still have one of the best farm systems to develop more major league talent. They also have the lowest salary this season, which means they have a lot of money they can throw towards free agents. With the amount of young talent they have and the money to be able to go out and sign free agents, Royals fans can look forward to a fun team to watch in years to come.

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