As stories have been passed down through the generations from our great-great-grandparents, the sting of losing the Kansas City Blues can still be felt across this fine nation. When the Western League was an up-and-comer, attempting to throw dirt in the eyes of the National League, the bustling burg of Kansas City had itself a baseball team. Our ancestors loved that team. From 1894 to 1900, fans ranging from Joplin all the way to St. Joseph would wagon train on down to the ballpark to catch the hometown Blues, living, breathing, and dying with their club. 

Then those no-good, East Coast charlatans in The District of Columbia stole the Blues away, where the Blues' name was sullied and changed into the grotesque name, the Senators. Sixty years later, the cities that are twinned stole that team right out from under Washington. The hatred of our forebearers runs deep within all of us, so it is with great pleasure that I tell you, the Royals hath defeated the lowly Twins of Minnesota on this eve, further plunging the knife into their slowing heart. 

Behind six innings of nine strikeout and two walk ball, Felipe Paulino powered the Royals through the first two-thirds of the game, with Tim Collins, Kelvin Herrera, and Aaron Crow tallying an inning apiece. The offense lay dormant for the greater part of the first five innings before pouncing on poor Kevin Slowey, eventually unleashing a seven-run, fourteen hit attack highlighted by a Moustakas double to straightaway center and a dinger to left. Billy Butler notched his second stolen base of the year aided in large part by Jarrod Dyson as the lead runner in a double steal (his second of the night.

In all the Twins were, nay, are no match for these upstart Royals of Kansas City. 

Win number 70 for the Royals, who finish the season 11-7 against the White Sox.

• No hits today for our beloved Melky Cabrera, which is of course all any of us should care about, right? The mercurial Melky remains at #199.
• Did we learn anything about Luis Mendoza today? I'm not sure. Obviously, he had an effective day, allowing just five hits and two walks to the White Sox. The old wisdom was that a guy who doesn't miss bats just couldn't survive in the Majors, especially the AL, but if every team is going to field two to three Dysons and Escobars to prove some point about the New Era of baseball, then maybe they can.
• I'm just going to assume Cain & Dyson together is a helluva defensive outfield. I'm moderately excited to watch the last three games, should they continue to play.
• Some weird decisions on Ned Yost's lineup card. Is he selecting guys randomly? Sal Perez hitting #5? Dyson leading off, with Cain hitting #6? Getz randomly playing?
• Actually, scratch that last question. Obviously Getz is playing so that Gordon Beckham can greet him with juvenile humor, because being gay is both an insult and really really funny.

Quite the onslaught. Start printing 2012 playoff tickets, because the foundation is in place, Dayton is making a move to bring Bloomquist back, and the future is bright.

• Remember when Zack/h Stewart almost threw a perfect game? Tonight he threw an imperfect game.
• 18 hits. I'm still not used to the Royals having a good offense. There's like four days left in the season, guess it just never sunk in.
• Lo Cain went 2-5 in his Royals debut, including a double.
• Four hits for a suddenly competent Moose at the plate. If only I was told "he adjusts slowly to new levels." Oh wait, I was told that five times a day for a month.
  
• Alcides Escobar homered.
• Eric Hosmer has 19 home runs, Jeff Francoeur has 20. Yay. Francoeur got to a round number for HRs.
• Mazzaro pitched a scoreless inning and lowered his ERA to 8.88

Quick Hits

• Paulino had 8 K's in 5 IP. He threw a ton of pitches and had to be replaced.
• The top of the lineup generated all the offense with Gordon, Cabrera and Butler scoring all three runs.
• Herrera was roughed up to take the loss.  1 IP, 1 HBP, 2 Hits, 1 HR, 3 Runs
• Perez went 2 for 4.  

Make it seven. The Royals got a serviceable start from Everett Teaford and another huge offensive night en route to another victory. I almost felt like a Red Sox or Yankees fan tonight: long innings, an endless string of hits, bottom of the order guys contributing with extra base knocks... wow.

•  The Royals had an absurd eighteen hits on the evening. As three players had three-hit games (Melky, Moose, Perez) and three more managed two-hit games (Gordon, Butler, and Escobar). 
• Moose's power surge continues, as he just got the ball over the wall for his fourth homer.
• Francoeur sent the game into laugher territory and sent his fans into ecstasies with a three run homer in the eighth. 
• In a somewhat pointless start, Getz tripled.
• I said above Teaford's start was serviceable, but perhaps that is unkind. He allowed just four hits and  walk, against four strikeouts in six innings. I suppose there is just a small part of me that thinks I could toss five decent innings against this sleepwalking Sox squad.

So much to say about this game and so little to say at the same time.

• Lots of discussion during the game thread about the fact that the Royals actually have a good offense (and might next year). I'm not used to it either.
  
• This is really a matter for another post, but the doubles thing is kinda stupid and kinda cool. I think records that take more than three words to explain are iffy (like Butler's annoying streak of hits in a series), and, well, the K is a great doubles park, which no one ever mentions. But anyway, we've seen so many Royals lineups that are: bad hitter who the manager thinks is fast - a guy who sucks - an ok hitter - Billy Butler - some random veteran- four of the worst hitters in the AL. This is different.
•  A borderline signature game for Moose, who blasted his third home run, added two singles, and randomly stole a base.
• Ned Yost's pay is directly died to how often Tim Collins and Chris Getz play.

Make it five in a row for your fourth place Royals!

• It's a bit of a bummer that this winning streak is coming now, because, as we see every spring, Royals fans are starved for a winner. People would have really enjoyed this in April or May. Oh well, wins are wins.
• As I wrote earlier today, we're starting to get into draft pick implications due to this hot streak. The Royals still might not win 70 games, but who knows... we always hear about ending the season strong.
• Four hits for Melky tonight. Sell high!
• Three hits for Sal... the Savior... Perez. Including a triple. Wha!?
• Billy hit a three run HR. It's a bit sad to think about all that went right for the offense this season.... and the team was still bad.
• Actually, everyone had a hit, except for Gordon, who in his laziness only managed two walks. Passive bastard.
• Jeff Francis had the most Jeff Francis start ever: two walks, two strikeouts, eight hits, randomly just two runs allowed to a dead White Sox team.
• I would write that I enjoyed Yost stretching out Coleman for a two inning appearance, but kinda I just don't care. I'm not saying that bitterly, it's just... September. Yost does some interesting things, but I don't trust him and I certainly don't think he's a strategic asset.

Thanks to a two-game sweep of the Twins (part of a four game winning streak overall) the Royals now have a four game lead in the fourth place race. It isn't what anyone really wants or cares about (I think) but I know many of us have no love for the Twins, so seeing them humbled a bit is no bad thing.

And draft position? Who cares about draft position. Dayton doesn't even need a 2012 draft. Or a 2013 draft. The system is that good.

Observations related to today:

• The Royals are now 36-39 at home.
  
• Six hits combined for the Francoeur-Moose portion of the order, including a Moose double and a Francoeur steal. I suspect they'll be hitting close to one another next season as well, and they're going to give us some boom or bust innings.
  
• Also of note were two hit games from Hosmer and Gordon. I'm not sure it is fully deserved but I think we're getting to the point where Hosmer will get some Rookie of the Year votes.
  
• I don't really file away Luke Hochevar's start as good or bad. The Twins can't score even when they want to, and they fielded a B-list lineup today. Not hatin', as they say, just, umm... sayin'.
• Tim Collins walked two batters. I hearby predict that Collins will see time in the minor leagues next season.