The Royals Bullpen and the Bottom of the Order Win a Game

Some of the biggest culprits in the Royals recent losing ways came through in a big way to pull a win out against the division leaders.

Hitters are hitting at the bottom of a lineup for a reason generally. Coming into play yesterday, the league was hitting .228/.292/.355 out of the bottom third of the order. The Royals were worse than that, though maybe not by as much as you’d think - .214/.291/.325. By OPS, that’s actually 20th-best, so it could be a lot worse, but it’s certainly not a part of the lineup you would think would help you to win some games. So when that bottom third goes a combined 5 for 11 with a walk and three RBIs in a 4-3 win, that’s the sort of game you circle and wait to look back on at the end of the year.

Add in that the Royals bullpen, much-maligned and with good reason, put up 5.1 innings without allowing a hit or a run and, well, this might be the most surprising win of the year just two days after what might be the worst loss of the year. Let’s talk about that bullpen first. They had the ninth-best ERA in baseball through April 30.