Kansas City Royals: Early Season Team Report Card
The 2011 MLB season is now two months old, which makes it time to start giving our early report cards on teams' progress so far this year.
The Kansas City Royals got off to a quick start at 10-4, but now see themselves sitting at six games under .500 after two months of play.
This has been largely due to the fact that the bullpen and defense have stepped it up so far this season.
While the 'pen has been a major strength of the team in '11, other areas, such as starting pitching, haven't been as good for KC.
Here is my early season report card for the Kansas City Royals.
Enjoy.
Offense
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Through the first two months, the KC offense has been led by veteran outfielders Alex Gordon, Jeff Francoeur and Melky Cabrera.
The trio have combined for 43 doubles, 23 homers and 96 RBI so far, as they have been the most consistent bats in the Royals lineup this season.
Kansas City has also received contributions from rookie Eric Hosmer, who has an impressive five homers in his first 23 big league games.
3B Wilson Betemit and DH Billy Butler lead the team in hitting, as they are batting .306 and .292 respectively.
This has all led to the Royals possessing the fifth-best team BA in baseball at .261 for the season, which is a step in the right direction for this unit.
Overall Grade: B
Defense
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The Royals have been sound on defense this season, leading to a team fielding percentage of .986, which is good enough for 10th-best in MLB.
The addition of slick-fielding SS Alcides Escobar and sure-handed 1B Eric Hosmer has really given the Royals infield defense a boost, as they both have Gold Glove ability at their respective positions.
Starting outfielder Jeff Francoeur is second in the league in assists, as he has compiled six from his right-field spot.
This isn't to say that KC hasn't had some defensive lapses this season, but overall, they have been solid in this area.
Overall Grade: B+
Starting Pitching
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Now we come to the weakest unit on the 2011 Kansas City Royals.
KC starters have combined for a 12-21 record this season, with only one pitcher managing to have an ERA under four.
Lefties Jeff Francis and Bruce Chen have been decent, but the rest of the rotation has struggled mightily to say the least.
However, the recent addition of rookie Danny Duffy should pay some dividends over time, but right now, this could be one of the worst Royals starting rotations in years.
Overall Grade: D
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Bullpen
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Easily the strongest part of the team in '11 has been its bullpen.
Rookies Aaron Crow and Tim Collins have been very good, combining for just 13 runs allowed in nearly 57 innings pitched for the campaign.
The one disappointment has been the surprising fallout of All-Star closer Joakim Soria, who has already blown five saves this year.
Even with Soria's struggles, this has the chance to be one of the best Royals 'pens in the history of the franchise.
Overall Grade: A-
Intangibles
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One thing that manager Ned Yost has tried to install in his young Royals is to try to make them a more aggressive team on the basepaths.
This has worked out well for KC this season, as they are first in the AL with 52 stolen bases so far in 2011.
KC has also come up with many clutch hits in key situations this season, as this is displayed with a string of walk-off victories back in April.
Other than catcher Bryan Pena's botched tag last week against Texas, the intangibles have mostly been there for the Royals this season.
Overall Grade: B+
Coaching
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Second-year manager Ned Yost has done a solid overall job managing one of the youngest teams in baseball.
Yost has made some questionable decisions, like the one in May when he decided to keep starter Vin Mazzaro in the game, leading to one of the worst pitching performances in baseball history.
However, it does seem like the Royals are having more fun under Yost compared to past managers such as Trey Hillman and Buddy Bell.
He has done an adequate job as the KC skipper so far, but the real test will be if he can keep this team near .500 for the rest of the season.
Coaching Grade: B-
Conclusion
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The Royals are definitely not lighting the world on fire with a 24-30 record, or by having a starting rotation that consists of Kyle Davies and Sean O'Sullivan.
However, they have played some very solid baseball at times this year, and have actually played much better than what their record currently displays.
This team still has a ways to go before it will be it be a playoff contender, but they are headed on the right track for now.
Overall Team Grade: B-
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