Royals need to rediscover winning formula on the road

A big reason the Kansas City Royals were a 95-win team during the 2015 regular season and a World Series championship team in the postseason was their ability to win on the road.

Fast forward to the here and now, and perhaps the biggest reason the Royals have been unable to gain traction this season has been their inability to win on the road. That’s something they’ll need to change moving forward, and the wheels could start turning on Saturday when they face the first-place Chicago White Sox in the Yahoo Sports’ Free Game of the Day.

You can stream the game for free at Yahoo’s Sports Home, MLB index and video home beginning at 2:10 p.m. ET.

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The numbers tell the story. Last season, the Royals obviously favored playing at home, as their 58-31 record (which includes the postseason) indicates. But that’s true of every team. Players get to sleep in their own beds. Players get to clear their minds on the drive to and from the ballpark. It’s just a more comfortable atmosphere that understandably breeds more success.

(Yahoo Sports) However, the Royals did a significant portion of their important business last season away from Kauffman Stadium. During the regular season, they were 44-37 on the road, which was second only to the Texas Rangers in the AL. In the postseason, they were 4-4, but those wins included staving off elimination at Minute Maid Park in ALDS Game 4, and then winning two of three at Citi Field to clinch the World Series.

Those are franchise-changing and history-defining wins that show how remarkably focused the Royals were on each task, and how little they were fazed by each challenge on the road. That’s what’s been missing from the Royals this season.

Looking at the current numbers, they’ve fared well at home again, going 13-7 through the first 20 games. But they’ve gone the opposite way on the road, posting an 8-13 mark. That includes Friday’s.4-1 win in Chicago, which they hope will be the calalyst for more success.

When searching for a deeper meaning, one can’t point exclusively at the offense. That’s because they’ve been equally disappointing home and away. On the road, they’re averaging 3.3 runs per game, while at home they’ve averaging 3.8.

Putting that aside, we find that pitching is where the major inconsistencies and issues stand out. On the road, they posted a 4.58 ERA ahead of Friday’s game, to go along with a miserable 1.56 strikeout-to-walk. At home, the ERA is a solid 3.31, and the K/BB is a much prettier 3.11. And, let’s be honest, we know it’s not Kansas City’s bullpen causing the damage. It’s about finding some level of consistency in the starting rotation.

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The Royals don’t have a dynamic group of starters, but they have an experienced group that for the most part is battle tested. They lost Johnny Cueto, but they still have Yordano Ventura, Edinson Volquez and Chris Young who have won big games for them. They also added a solid veteran in Ian Kennedy this winter. They all need to step up. As do guys like Danny Duffy, who’s scheduled to start on Saturday, and even Mets’ castaway Dillon Gee, who was the winner on Friday.

For the Royals to be the Royals again, they need to be on the attack. But that’s a little tougher to do when consistently playing from behind.

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