Kansas City Baseball: Royals Look to Surprise

The three-game sweep of the mighty Detroit Tigers by Trey Hillman's young Kansas City Royals may not portend anything as lofty as a playoff run this season, but it's getting easier to see this is a team on the rise.

What's especially feel-good about their start is that these are good guys. Those who flocked to the quaint ballpark in the Arizona suburb of Surprise to see the Royals train in the Cactus League were met by a group eager to please—on the field and off.

The great thing about spring training is how close you can get to the players. When you're a kid with that kind of access, you'd better have a pen handy because anything is fair game for an autograph: ball, cap, program, leg cast—it doesn't matter.

Incredibly, a lot of players and coaches aren't accommodating. But when you see guys like Mark Teahan, Jose Guillen, Rusty Kuntz, and John Wathan not only signing but taking the time to chat with their supporters, all is right with the world for at least a few weeks in March.

Serious baseball fans will recognize the Royals are a team comprised of many individual stories worth watching:

Hillman, who toiled as a manager in the minors for 11 years before becoming a championship skipper in Japan, finally gets his shot in the bigs.

Zack Greinke, a phenom just a couple of years ago whose career was temporarily derailed by personal problems. Now he's back in the rotation throwing gas and poised for a breakout year, as evidenced by his opening outing Thursday in Detroit.

Brian Bannister, a castoff from a New York Mets organization starved for starting pitchers in the back end of its rotation, has been impressive since his move to the Midwest.

Joakim Soria, a Rule Five draftee who's solidified his hold on the closer's role.

John Bale, a journeyman hurler who's looking to stick as the Royals' fourth starter after earning his shot in the spring.

Alex Gordon, a can't-miss Rookie of the Year candidate in 2007 who struggled in his rookie year. The third baseman has much to prove and has set out to do just that with two homers in the first three games of '08.

The hiring of Dayton Moore as general manager and now Hillman as manager are the foundations for what may finally be a baseball renaissance in Kansas City. Being in the tough American League Central Division means growth will be slow, but the talent is coming together for it to be measurable.