As the All-Star break is upon us, and our favorite boys in blue are playing poker in private jets, or living it up in the night clubs of Miami, we too need some relaxation and perspective on this team. It seems this fan base is seated in the front row of the Timberwolf. Big ups, quick drops, and violent shakes have taken over the emotions and opinions of our faithful. So let's take a look back at some other seasons, and parallels.
First, in 2015 the Royals were a much better team than they are this year. And that being said, they still were swept by an team full of young up-in-coming stars right before the break. The Houston Astros laid the wood to the Royals in 2015 almost identically to the way the Dodgers just did to us. The town and the national media began to wonder if this team was really as good as people thought. And we all know how that story ended.
Or think back even further. 2014 was the year of the great comeback. Essentially the Royals did in August, September, and October, what they did in June and early July of this season. But they needed a come to Jesus meeting with one Raul "The interior Decorator" Ibanez to kick start them. This team is three years more seasoned. Has it's own internal leaders, and probably doesn't need any one to be brought in to explain how to act and play. And that team in 2014 had almost an identical record to this years team, and the same central core of players.
So hopefully all this gives you some reason to not panic. Now that being said, the biggest difference between those teams and this one is the bullpen. This years bullpen is still better than many. Especially when you look at the core of Minor, Moylan, Soria, and Herrera. Scott Alexander struggles a bit controlling the sinker, but when it's on he is a ground ball machine. If you add one more solid piece to this line-up we will still not be to HDH levels, but we will be much stronger. Add a bat off the bench, and this team could be ready for another meeting with October.
And we all know once you get to October this team finds a way to get it done. Oh, and by the way. In 2015 the Royals got a re-match with that team that swept them just before the All-Star break. And we all know how that went for the Astros. So here is to hoping we get to see those Dodgers again in the Playoffs. After all, we swept the Giants in 2014, and look how that ended up for them.
