When the Royals won the first of their nine straight games, they improved to 23 games below .500. So it’s natural to see the end of a nine-game winning streak and wonder if the fever dream is over. This year, teams have lost long winning streaks only to struggle a few times. The Rays have had two nine-game winning streaks this year and lost three in a row immediately following. After the first one, they had a five-game losing streak not long after. They’re 5-8 since the second one. The Red Sox lost five in a row after a nine-game losing streak. But a lot of teams also just kept on winning. I was curious what the Royals would do.
It’s only one game, but boy did they answer that question emphatically. They dismantled the Blue Jays in an impressive showing, winning 13-2 and tying for their second-largest margin of victory this year. They got contributions from almost everyone in the lineup, including two hits from players brought in when the game was out of hand. But their stars really did the starring in this one, while nobody shined brighter than Jac Caglianone. And it came a day after he had a pretty rough day at the plate in big spots, so it was nice to see him bounce back in a big way.
Caglianone is now just one five-hit game away this year from tying Billy Butler, Al Cowens, Joe Randa and, oh yeah, Tyler Tolbert for most five-hit games in a season by a Royals hitter.