Royals Rumblings - News for September 7, 2017

David Lesky posits that the Royals might not be done, but not necessarily through any work of their own:

And that’s sort of an upsetting thought. When the Royals were 55-48, they were adding pieces and beating the Red Sox. The expectation wasn’t a whimper down the stretch, but rather a roar.

I don’t say this as a rallying cry, I say this as a fan of a team in the terribly mediocre American League: It’s not over yet. My guess is just a guess. At three games out, this team is very much alive for that chance to go to New York. Go in to these next eight games and show flashes of the team we saw for much of June and July and do something crazy like take seven of eight and it’s a whole new ballgame. Even if they go 6-2, they’ll head to Cleveland at 74-71. Maybe they get Danny Duffy back in the rotation to replace the abomination that is the fifth starter spot right now. Maybe Joakim Soria comes back to help solidify the bullpen (don’t laugh, you know you miss him after seeing some of these guys).

My point isn’t that I’m telling you the Royals are going to win. My point is that counting these guys out has always been silly. I’ve mentioned this before, but it’s worth mentioning again. In the seventh inning of the fourth game of the 2015 American League Division Series, I was just about done with an article I was writing called “RIP 2015 Royals” and decided to take a step back and let the story finish. I didn’t do so with the intention of them coming back to win an elimination game in the fashion they did, but I realized I was missing out on watching the game because my face was buried in my laptop. That post never saw the light of day.

Kings of Kauffman’s Justin Jones thinks the Royals should give Raúl Mondesí some playing time down the stretch.

Miss you.

Sam Gaviglio will make the start on Thursday, after Trevor Cahill’s relief appearance Tuesday made him ineligible to take the mound:

Gaviglio will make his Royals debut Thursday after officially being named Kansas City's starting pitcher for the opener of its four-game set against the division rival Minnesota Twins.

Gaviglio, 27, was 3-5 with a 4.62 ERA in 12 games (11 starts) with the Mariners this season. He also recorded a 3.88 ERA in 13 starts for Triple-A Tacoma.

"Each start was a learning experience," Gaviglio said. "Towards the end, I got a little mechanically off, but I feel like I got back to my normal mechanics. I'm excited."

BP’s Patrick Dubuque ponders whether monuments (including baseball stadiums) are ethical?

Manny Machado’s BABIP-related early-season struggles shockingly look to be BABIP-related.

Jeff Sullivan breaks down how Justin Verlander got his groove back. No tropical vacations involved.

David Laurilia does a brief profile of D-backs minor-leaguer and Midwesterner Daulton Varsho.

So this date went poorly. And speaking of things going poorly, Willson Contreras’s pursuit of Mia Khalifa via direct messages on Twitter did not go well either.

Dennis Rodman is going to save the world for the first time since Double Team.

Time Out Austin sits down with A Giant Dog’s Andrew Cashen to talk about their new LP, Toy.

A first look at Rami Malek as Freddie Mercury in the forthcoming Queen biopic, Bohemian Rhapsody.

Colin Trevorrow is out on Episode IX.

/film chats with BoJack Horseman showrunner Raphael Bob-Waksberg in advance of season four, which drops tomorrow.

The song of the day is “Bendover” by A Giant Dog: