Mr. Dignan’s Wildcard Ride
After an offseason that saw unprecedented spending by the Royals, I felt a need to be there for Opening Day this year. Loving the core we had in place and dreaming of what might be, I made it a point to attend one home game a month this season. After making it to six, I am hoping for the chance to add #7! PHOTO CREDIT - disKCovery
Published October 2, 2024
In the same way that Hall of Famer Rogers Hornsby famously awaited spring, I look forward to fall. While my love of quarterzips, pumpkin spice, football, cider, and bonfires is well-documented; I await the falling of the leaves most of all for the same reason Hornsby applauded their arrival - baseball.
There is a magic to October baseball that is beyond definition. During the scorching dog days of summer, I sit at the ballpark sipping on a cold beer dreaming of the days where I can throw on a hoodie and watch this sport I love take on new life.
Whether or not your team is in the thick of things, baseball fans can begin to feel “it” as September winds down. But when your team is one of the lucky 12 or, at least, has a chance to be among those who dance? Oh, what a feeling it is! The buzz that surrounds every waking moment for as long as your team’s season still has life is unlike anything else in sport. The swings of a series. The weight of every pitch. The battles that wage over the course of days, not hours. I wish I could explain it but as I said, the magic of October is beyond definition. So why insult something so wonderful and pure by even trying?
“People ask me what I do in winter when there’s no baseball. I’ll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring.”
Also, why waste words describing that which so many of us are already feeling? The height of which many of us have already felt?
For decades, October baseball was something that we in Kansas City were aware of. We knew of it. We’d seen it on TV. Truthfully, it was a lot like Halley’s Comet. We had to ask our parents and grandparents to tell us their tales of seeing it. For the last time it had come our way, this generation was either way too young or not yet born. The closest we could come was finding an old VCR to watch the highlights and dream of a day where this phenomenon may once again choose to pass us by.
And then 10 years ago, it happened. I was at Kauffman Stadium when something wonderful happened. I was in the stadium when something so marvelous and fantastical and sensational happened! In hindsight, we should have seen it coming, but it took us all by surprise.
There were warning signs. Two years prior, Kansas City had experienced the pure spectacle of getting to host the Major League Baseball Homerun Derby and All-Star Game. The sports world pressing pause to descend on our city for one week was truly special. When a packed Kauffman Stadium serenaded Yankees’ second baseman Robinson Cano in a chorus of well-deserved boos for reneging on a promise to this city (and our beloved Country Breakfast), it was the loudest that many of us had ever heard that stadium.
I swear my television was shaking from the passion of the fans. And even over the airwaves, the cheer that erupted from that place when Cano karmically failed to hit a single dinger caused many of us to dream of what it could be like to play meaningful baseball in that place. Our place.
And then, as if manifested by a million wishes on a million stars by a million sports fans in unison, this city began to win. It actually began with soccer of all things.
It was that same summer that we hosted the MLB All-Star festivities that Sporting Kansas City hoisted the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup after winning the final in a thrilling penalty kick shootout. Then, the following year, it was soccer again as Sporting Kansas City won their second MLS Cup. Once again, a trophy came to our city on the strength of penalty kick prowess. But in 2013, this air of sports success was rubbing off. Things had trended up for the Royals too as they finished their season with a winning record for the first time in a decade. While soccer lacked the national fervor of other sports, and nobody was talking about the Royals; in our own corner of the Heartland, we were happy to snack on these crumbs of sports relevance after only experience a barren cupboard of a sports era. It was already so far beyond what my generation of Kansas Citians had ever known.
So, then, to be walking out of Kauffman Stadium in the earliest hours of the morning of October 1, 2014 and attempting to process that which my own eyes had seen; it was not a scenario that I ever thought I could be in. The witching hour is often one where I am dreaming, but this was a beautiful dream from which none of us would ever be awakened. Clearly, there are always people in the stands during the iconic sports moments that are larger than any team, city, or league; but I had never before been one of those fans.
“... the Royals are advancing. That the Chiefs made the Patriots look kind of bad on Monday night. And so clearly, something is going on in Kansas City, but apparently [Sporting Kansas City] are the ones who got it all started ... It’s a pretty good day to be from Kansas City. ... It’s a great sports town.”
Had the Royals simply made the postseason for the first time in 29 years, it would have been enough. Getting to actually host a home postseason game was marvelous. But then, the way that the team never gave up and somehow clawed their way back from a four run deficit when all hope seemed lost; even the mention of it now give me chills.
For in that moment, when Salvador Perez singled down the third base line, I swear the roar of The K rivaled anything that has ever emanated from it’s cross-complex neighbor. Kansas City had enjoyed a small taste of professional sports success but on that night, in stealing six bases en route to victory, the Kansas City Royals had stolen the show. The American sports spotlight shone on this city in a way that was once beyond imagination.
We had always been a city that took pride in our teams and loved them, but in those earliest years of the 2010s, they evolved into teams of which we could be proud. They became teams which other cities and fanbases actually envied. While it was not something we had experienced much of prior, none of that mattered. Our fifteen minutes were here and after three decades, there seemed to be a city-wide need to relish it for however long it may last. During those magical weeks in the fall of 2014, we had no way of knowing what would follow. We had no reason to expect that it would cement the first chapter of the golden age of Kansas City sports.
But now, knowing I do, I am thankful for the pictures, and the memories, and the way I took it all in. I am so grateful that I was fortunate enough to attend one game of all seven postseason rounds the Royals participated in between 2014 and 2015. (Even better that I went 6 - 1 and saw some of the series’ biggest and most memorable moments!) As a writer, there does remain one regret. It is that during that era, I rarely recorded my own thoughts and feelings as I rode the wave of that magical blip.
All things considered, this has been such a short wait for postseason relevance. (Honestly, when you have gone 29 years without, nine years feels like nothing in comparison.) I decided that I would approach this first American League Wildcard game against the Baltimore Orioles with both an appreciation for what has been and a hope for that which might be.
Knowing that prior obligation would keep me from watching Game 2, and that Game 1 could well be the only Royals’ postseason game I got to watch, I thought it would be best to detail my own reactions. Whether it be my own <internal thoughts>, text messages, or the words I was bound to audibly say to nobody at all as I watched the game, I thought they were worth recording. And so, that’s exactly what I did.
2024 American League Wildcard Series, Game 1
Kansas City Royals at Baltimore Orioles
Tuesday, October 1, 2024 - 3:08pm CT
The Pregame
<Man, I love the NFL but why does ESPN need to spend so much time on it? Is there going to be any sort of pre-game for the Royals / Orioles match-up or are we going to miss first pitch for fantasy waiver wire targets? Stop talking about Davante Adams trade targets, there’s playoff baseball on!>
[NFL Live ends and the screen pans to Baltimore]
<Man, that looks so cool! Look at all those twirling orange towels. I need to go back to Camden Yards! Man, what might have been. But, look at how beautiful that is. Can we please get just one playoff game at Kauffman this year? I forgot just how much I missed all of this. I want to be part of a mob of blue towels.>
Justin: My brother in law is out there in Baltimore cheering on the Boys in Blue! (blue heart emoji)
Me: I would love to be. It’s such a great ballpark.
Justin: Definitely near the top of my list to visit
Me: Do It! It’s amazing. That’s the last place that I ever saw Yordano Ventura pitch live. (crying emoji).
Justin: Still glad I got to see him start Game 2 of the 2014 WS. First time I ever saw him pitch was the 2012 Futures game.
<This really is an amazing battle of young stars. This homegrown young Orioles team reminds me so much of what we had back in 2014.>
“… Bobby Witt, Jr. might be the best all-around player in the game not named Shohei Ohtani. … He’s got so much versatility as an athlete.”
<SAY IT LOUDER FOR THOSE IN THE BACK JESSICA MENDOZA! LET THE MVP VOTERS HEAR YOU! FIRST TWO-TIME 30/30 SHORTSTOP!>
Me: Don’t like Ben McDonald calling this game. He’s the Orioles’ color guy if remember correctly.
Mom: If we can survive Joe Buck, we can survive McDonald.
Me: Unpopular opinion but I don’t mind Joe Buck calling baseball games. I know a lot do. I kind of miss him.
<They already rolled back the tarp. More rain seems possible they’re saying. Ragans versus Burnes. Runs are going to be hard to come by today. Both line-ups are slumping. Wet conditions. Elite pitching. The first team to three definitely wins this one. Two might be enough.>
Me: Runs are going to be hard to come by today.
Mom: Yup. Go Ragans!
Emily: Devan, what’s the history on the Wild Card being 3 games? What year did it change from 1 to 3?
Me: 2022 I think? It was after COVID when they expanded to 12. I’m a fan.
Emily: I figured you’re faster than Google lol.
<And here we go>.
The 1st Inning
<A lead-off single! Are our bats back?! LET’S GO MICHAEL MASSEY!>
<Welcome to the postseason Bobby Witt! Aaaand, good-bye. Oh well, lots of game left.>
<WELCOME BACK VINNIE! Man, I missed that ridiculous chain! How in the world is he actually back? Pop out. Ok. He still hit that ball hard! Vinnie is back!>
Me: Vinnie with the gold sasquatch chain hanging out for all to see!
<Dangit. Groundout for Salvy. Ok, a hit in the 1st is more than I expected with Burnes on the mound. Salvy hit that ball hard. This is shaping up to be a great day for our bats.>
<They’re going to be talking about this battle of the young shortstops all day. Don’t let Henderson on base before Bobby is. Ragans seems to be all over the place. Is he erratic? Or is this intentional? Pop-up Great start!>
“ … Chapman helped the Rangers win a World Series, and the Royals got a guy in Cole Ragans for the future and they believe that future is now.”
Me: I love that McDonough mentioned the Aroldis Chapman trade. [J.J.] Picollo doesn’t get enough credit for that. It really was a win / win.
<That’s not even fair! Ragans is feeling it. The way that pitch skirted the inside of the plate. Nobody can hit that!>
<Alright, one inning down. Great stuff Ragans.>
The 2nd Inning
<Man, the Detroit Tigers are inevitable. They’re up 3-0? This is why they were my preseason pick to win the Central. The talent is there, and I HATE IT. It just feels like they can’t lose. Feels like a team of destiny and [Tarik] Skubal is an absolute beast!>
<Wow, that was fast. Ok, Ragans time again.>
<What a play by Thommy Pham! BIG TIME GRAB!>
Me: Love seeing Thommy Pham get an opportunity to make those catches in October! (Powder blue heart emoji. Royal blue heart emoji.)
St. Louis Peeps: <CRICKETS>
<Seriously, the Royals are in the playoffs and the Cardinals are not. No matter what happens, THIS IS AMAZING!>
Me: It’s early but Ragans is getting a K per inning! Gotta love that!
<And there goes the no-no! The end of Cowser’s bat did not hesitate to grab that!>
<Ok, pop-out! No damage done!>
The 3rd Inning
<Feels like we’re making some contact but sooner or later, we gotta string together some hits and put some pressure on them. Really don’t want to play from behind with Burnes on the mound.>
<That seems like it was way too easy for the O’s. We need another base-runner!>
<Of course they’re interviewing the Baltimore skipper during the biggest hit of the game. Lead-off double? Not ideal!>
<Wait, did that man just hit “The Sprinkler” at second? RESPECT.>
<Man, McCann got a hold of that ball. Thank goodness it went foul. Lucky for that not to be a run.>
<Did he just throw his bat into our dugout? Talk about committing to the swing. Ragans has three strikeouts in three innings? WOW!>
<DAMN. Mullins is on third. Gotta get out of this!>
<OH THANK GOD! THANK GOODNESS FOR THE DEPTH OF CAMDEN! That ball sounded so good.>
Me: No sound in baseball is sweeter than the abrupt silence of a crowd who thinks a pop-out is going yard.
The 4th Inning
<Welp, that’s a bummer of a way for Witt to lead things off.>
“The Royals have gotten here despite two separate seven game losing streaks down the stretch. They benefitted largely from Minnesota’s collapse.”
<Burnes is getting some insane movement on his pitches but man, that was a bad cut for Pasquatch.>
<That was too easy of an out for Salvy. We need runs.>
<Still one K per inning! Got him to swing so early! >
<“And another one!” (in best DJ Khaled internal monologue). The way that ball broke. My god!>
Alex: Ragans has them looking like they’ve never been here before. (Laughing emoji)
Alex: He has them swinging at that curve ball like Little Leaguers. Cole’s change-up is amazing because I can’t tell out of the hand or the arm slot the difference between that and his fastball. But, it’s 10 - 12 mph less and it breaks.
Me: Yeah, that break is so nasty.
Alex: I don’t want to try to hit him!
<CAN O’ CORN! We’ll take that. Is Ragans actually getting better?! So hard to believe this is his first postseason start.>
The 5th Inning
Me: THERE WE GO GURRIEL! Huge way to lead off the inning!
<Are you kidding me?! What rotten luck! Did he actually just double him up?>
Me: And, never mind.
<He made a next-to-impossible catch on a ball that was hit to the only place where that could have been a double play. I hate it, but do I stand up and clap? I won’t. People will look at me weird but still, WOW.>
<People are going to complain about the Strauss partnership on the helmets but I barely notice it. The pitcher’s mound logo constantly changing is quite disctracting thought. T-Mobile. GEICO. What’s next?>
<That pitch was just so, so dirty. Can’t do anything about that. Here comes Cole again.>
<Man, I love that Cal [Ripken, Jr.] is at this game repping his squad. Now that I see him, I won’t unsee him the rest of the game. I can’t look away from the white quarterzip. Can we get a separate Cal Cam? Did they just say he goes to almost every game? Wasn’t enough to be at every game as a player but also at every one as an alum? What a freaking legend!>
<What can a batter even do with that fastball? The combo of placement and speed. At that point as a hitter, you just have to take the L and tip the cap.>
<Oh yuck MJ! That’s not like you at all! Should’ve been a pretty routine out. Not the situation we want to be in at this juncture.>
Me: That is so unlike MJ! Gotta get out of this.
Nathan: I couldn’t tell you the last time I saw someone overrun a ball.
Me: This ain’t good. We need a double play bad.
Nathan: McCann’s a decent candidate.
Me: But, just one at a time.
Nate: A strike out would work
<Oh man, I can’t watch. Runners on the corners.>
Me: C’mon Cole.
<Man that was high! I hope the runners don’t have him rattled.>
<That change-up on McCann. WHOA!>
Nathan: That curve was nasty
Me: So nasty that it should’ve had a parental advisory label
Nathan: So nasty that it’ll call you Ms. Jackson
Me: Damn! What a break on that!
Nathan: Hell yeah
<THAT’S HOW YOU GET OUT OF A JAM! Runners on the corners? No problem!>
Me: ICE. COLE. RAGANS. (Followed by 7 freezing emojis, one for each strikeout).
Nick: He’s him.
The 6th Inning
<And now Sage is on the mound. What is Sage? I don’t know why that’s so distracting but it is.>
<Way to battle Garcia! Huge to just have a base-runner finally. Have we even had one since the lead-off? So hard to remember.>
<THAT’S WHAT SPEED DOOOOO!!!! He’s so damn fast! Not even close!>
“Garcia had 37 stolen bases this year. That was good enough for third in the AL.”
<I think it was fourth but yeah, give the man his due.>
<Did they just say that 41 bags have been stolen on Burnes this season? Worst in the league? This is our bread and butter. Let’s run on him! We need guys on base!>
<Way to advance him Massey. Ok. C’mon Bobby Baseball. If you want an October moment. This is it.>
Nick: Bobby Baseball!
Me: Garcia gets all the credit there. He really made that happen. But, hell yes Bobby!
Me: Now Bobby needs to do the same.
<Bobby will get all the love there but Garcia manufactured that run. He put pressure on Burnes. Do it again. C’mon Bobby. Steal second.>
“Send Bobby.”
<We’re in his head. Send him!>
“C’mon Q. Send Bobby.”
<Oh snap. Astros have the tying run on second in the ninth. This could get interesting.>
<GO BOBBY GO!>
Nick: That was a really close play
Me: Yup. Good call to steal and good call to challenge.
Me; Garcia rattled Burnes. Bobby was trying to do the same. Love it!
Me: Love that decision!
Me: I felt he was safe but not enough there to overturn the call. Right idea there and right call for us to challenge.
Emily: Agreed
<Oh well, got a run! Vinnie is still at the plate next inning.>
<We’re on the board. The worst thing we can do is let them answer immediately.>
<Wait, Ragans is only at 70 pitches?!?>
<This win percentage meter is so dumb. I need to block that out. The last thing I need is math getting my hopes up. Did I really just think that? Math and getting my hopes up?>
<Ragans just tried to notch his eighth K super cheaply. That was such a low pitch and I love it.>
<Man, Mountcastle is making him earn it. This at-bat has lasted forever.>
“C’mon Cole…”
Nathan: Ryan’s [Mountcastle] seeing lots of pitches.
<That’s the one that gets him?! Another K! Man, that was a brutal way to go after that battle! That change-up though.>
Nathan: Ice.
<ICE! COLE! RAGANS!>
The 7th Inning
Me: We need to find another run here. C’mon Vinnie!
Me: I love that Vinnie is at least making contact consistently. That’s promising.
Alex: Yep
<Man, Burnes is pitching a gem.>
<THERE WE GO SALVY!>
<And double play. That tracks.>
Nathan: Woof.
<Man, the Tigers are inevitable. Last team anyone wants to face right now.>
Me: I hope Ragans has at least one more inning in him.
Alex: I think he does.
Me: Our failure in so many games has been leaving starters in for too long.
Me: I’m guessing [Cole] is around 85 [pitches]. Dreaming of a 10 pitch inning.
Alex: True, but also I’ve seen a lot of close pitchers’ duels ruined by the pen.
Me: Agreed.
Me: Gotta pitch Ragans at least one more. I hope he has one more in him.
<Wait a second, that’s not Cole. Is that Sam Long? His control scares me.>
<WHAT THE HELL Q?!? BRING BACK COLE!>
“What are we even doing here?”
Me: I thought Ragans would pitch one more. This just got scary.
Nathan: He was only at 79 pitches!
Nathan: Why Sam Long of all people?
Me: We usually leave guys in too long but I think we pulled him too soon.
Nathan: Just checked. He was at 80.
Me: I don’t like Ragans being pulled here. Usually Q leaves them in too long. Today was too soon IMO.
Emily: He had a low pitch count still. Gotta get this out.
Me: I don’t get pulling Ragans here.
Nick: I heard they pulled him for calf tightness.
Me: Interesting.
Me: Ragans was pulled for calf cramping. Makes sense now.
Emily: Ohhhhh didn’t hear that.
Me: Right decision.
<This is so nerve-wracking!>
<Oh, well that was surprisingly easy. Maybe 8 pitches? Two long innings ahead but NICE JOB LONG!>
Me: Good inning by Long
Nathan: Happy to be surprised.
Me: Also, Orioles have the best batting helmet in the league.
Nathan: Their entire aesthetic is strong.
<Man, I gotta get back to Camden.>
The 8th Inning
< Welp, that was fast. I guess we’re playing for the shutout. Don’t love it but here we are. Can’t waste this Ragans performance!>
<Who are we sending out? I hope it’s Bubic.>
<NICE! It is Kris Bubic.>
Me: I really like Bubic. I hope he can get it done here.
Mom: Dang, a walk!
Me: Yeah, two outs but Bubic looking shaky. Has to find his control.
<C’mon Bubic. Just finish what you started man!>
Me: C’mon Bubic. Dangit man. This ain’t good.
“My man is done. Gotta pull him Q!”
<Should we just put Erceg in? He can get 4 outs right? That’s the right move isn’t it? Do I even say that?>
Nathan: Put in Erceg and let him go 1.1.
Me: (EMPHASIZES TEXT)
<ERCEG’S COMING IN! Let’s f****** go!>
“C’mon Lucas…”
Me: C’mon Lucas!
Me: Atta boy!
Nathan: (Fire emojis)
<Piece of cake.>
Me: Long scares me and he was nails. I like Bubic and he fell apart. Clearly, what do I know?
The 9th Inning
<One run isn’t going to get the job done. Gotta have another.>
Alex: Would like some insurance here.
Me: Need a run here for sure.
<Wow. Burnes is still in?>
<GARCIA AGAIN!>
“There we go! [CLAP!]”
Me: Garcia having a bigtime day!
<Are we finally familiar with Burnes? Gotta capitalize!>
“… Burnes has never pitched a complete game. And he’s not going to get the chance to do so today either.”
<Well, I guess Baltimore thought so too. What a gem by Burnes! He was lights out but I wanted one more chance at him.>
Me: Burnes was incredible today. Would’ve been nice to watch both guys go 8. Burnes has nothing to be ashamed of.
Nathan: Nothing at all.
<Well, that’s not what we wanted.>
<Fouled off the foot! Walk it off Bobby. We need you here.>
“Shake it off Bobby Baseball… C’mon now.”
<NEVER A DOUBT! GARCIA STRIKES AGAIN!>
Me: Why challenge that?
Nathan: Why not?
“… the Orioles are going to lose this challenge but you can’t take ‘em with you.”
<Not the second baserunner I wanted in Vinnie but one we’ll gladly take.>
<C’mon Salvy! Just need a single to get us some insurance.>
Emily: Oh Salvy!
Me: We just needed a base hit.
<Oh Salvy! Indeed.>
Me: Ok Erceg, c’mon buddy.
<Is that Ryan O’Hearn? Don’t like that. The scriptwriters are going to love this if he comes through.>
Me: Oh god. Not O’Hearn. Hate this so much.
Me: Find your pitch Erceg.
“C’mon Lucas…”
<Now that’s a ball?! That pitch has been a strike all day! Beautiful pitch. I hope that call doesn’t shake him. Why do they choose now to call that a freaking ball?!>
Me: That’s been a strike all day.
Alex: Yep.
Nathan: That was a great pitch.
Me: This just got scary. C’mon Erceg. Calm down.
<Forget about the runner and just pitch.>
“C’mon Lucas…”
<That should not have been a strikeout. That ball was so low!>
Me: I’ll take the makeup call there. That was so generous.
Nathan: Agreed
Alex: Got one back.
Me: That was generous.
Alex: Salvy framed that up.
“C’mon Lucas…”
<Kjerstad just will not die!>
“C’mon Lucas…”
<OH! That break was nasty! WINNER!>
<LET’S F****** GOOOOOO!!!!>
“Mmph! [Clearly visible fist pump]”
Emily: GO ROYALS
Nathan: Let’s go!
Me: WINNER!
Sam: I was so nervous
Me: That’s what an October pitchers duel does.
Me: Too many people don’t understand how beautiful and exciting a 1-0 game can be.
Me; Winner!
Mom: Spoiler Alert!
Mom: Yay!!!!!!!
Alex: Woo!
Me: F*** yeah!
Nick: Let’s f******* go baby!
Me: WINNER!
<Did they say first postseason road shutout in team history? Man, having starting pitching is SO NICE!>
Mom: Let’s hope they get it done tomorrow.
Me: Yup.
<Body immediately loosens. Relief washes over me. We live to fight for at least two more days.>
It was interesting that McDonough mentioned the Minnesota Twins’ collapse on the broadcast because, frankly, it would not be fair to tell the story of this Royals’ team without it. This team has clearly earned all that they have gotten but the ineptitude of the Twins down the stretch was pivotal to all that has transpired. It was yet another epic sports failure in the history of a market that has been tortured more than, perhaps, any other in America.
I remember staying up late last Thursday as the Twins blew opportunity after opportunity in their game against the Marlins. When the Twins so elegantly snatched defeat from the jaws of victory, it felt in that moment that the Royals were actually going to find a way to get in after a dreadful September. The Minnesota Twins had been so good all year but sometimes you can just tell when someone has lost it, and that entire team had clearly lost it. It was obvious that despite multiple week-long losing streaks, the Twins may be the Royals’ path to October.
Cleveland has the Guardians. Anaheim has the Angels. But as my friend Nick had put it a few weeks back, “Minnesota may just end up being the Royals’ Guardian Angels.”
In some ways, the entire collapse of that organization felt karmic.
Last season, the Minnesota Twins ended an unbelievable 20 year drought and 18 game postseason losing streak. (Read that again. They lost 18 straight postseason baseball games. Do you know how hard that is to do? It’s a level of postseason incompetence never replicated in American professional sports!) In ending their slide, they not only swept the Wildcard against Toronto, but they actually found a way to win one against the Astros as well.
There's been many years where your dog taking the derby is your best hope of seeing a winner. That has certainly not been the case in 2024! PHOTO CREDIT - disKCovery
Over the past two decades, the Twins have arguably been the most consistently successful team in the division. Finally, they got over the hump and hemorrhaged their playoff futility. So how did the Twins respond to their most successful campaign this century?
The notoriously stingy Pohlad family who owns the team announced they were cutting payroll for the 2024 season. (And shortly after this year’s collapse, a member of the Pohlad family dumped salt in the wound by doubling down that they stand by their decision to do so.)
Meanwhile, six hours and change south on I-35, John Sherman & Co. saw a 106 loss team and responded quite differently. They went out and made the Royals one of the top five spending teams in free agency (not named the Dodgers). Then, they locked down their young superstar for, seemingly, the entire duration of his career in an unprecedented deal.
So, when the Twins dropped that game to the Orioles last Friday night and the Royals backed into a Wildcard spot, it didn’t feel ideal but it definitely felt deserved. Celebrating in Atlanta after a night the Royals lost was no one’s prescribed path. After the team had been tied for the division lead just a couple weeks ago, this is not the scene fans awaited. Most fans would want to see their team take the reins, step up, and take what’s theirs.
But then again, given the contrasting responses to 2023 by two polar-opposite ownership groups, it did feel karmic. It just seemed that the right team had gotten in.
It was not the way many Royals fans wanted to see them get in, but when it comes to the dance, all that matters is that you do get in. As this city learned exactly 10 years ago, the magic of October baseball is that once you’re there, absolutely anything can happen.
Where were you for yesterday’s game? What are your favorite memories of the 2014 and 2015 runs? What were your emotions like the past few weeks? Yesterday? Share it in the comments!
