Better Eighth Than Never (Plus the Royals Final Deadline Haul)

The Royals had a big day on the trade market and then had another exciting eighth inning in their game.

Let’s start with last night’s game for the Royals because there actually isn’t a whole lot to talk about with it. I know that there will be some hand-wringing about needing a comeback to beat the White Sox and “only” winning by one, but a win is a win. Ultimately, style points don’t mean anything even if things like run differential are interesting to point to in determining just how “real” a team is. That said, it sure would be nice if the Royals would make it a little easier on themselves and not wait until the eighth inning to start their comeback.

But the White Sox have kind of done this all season long. Last night was their 32nd game that they’ve had a lead or been tied at some point after the sixth inning that they lost. You might remember I wrote that the Royals had 13 such games before the break and have added two since, so they have 15 of those games. Yes, the White Sox have been in an excellent position to win 32 times that they’ve lost. You’re not going to win all of them, but if they had the 15 the Royals do with their beleaguered bullpen, they’d be 44-66. That is by no means good, but it’s not the abomination of 27-83. So the point is that the Royals aren’t the first, nor will be the last to be in a spot to lose to the White Sox and still win.