5 Most Important Kansas City Royals in 2013

Kansas City Royals pitcher Greg Holland (56) celebrates with catcher Salvador Perez (13) Mandatory Credit: Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports

The Kansas City Royals enjoyed their most successful season since 1989 when they won 86 games in 2013. They team had a terrific second half that kept them in the wild card race into the final week of the season when they were finally eliminated with 4 games to go.

The Royals had a winning record in 5 of the 6 months, and only an absolutely brutal stretch in May, when they lost 20 of 25 kept them from making the playoffs for the first time since winning the World Series in 1985.

This once proud franchise has been a door mat for most of the past three decades now, and success was welcomed, despite a certain unbelieving wariness on the part of the fans. Several players contributed to the success the Royals enjoyed in 2013.

Even though several key offensive players such as Billy Butler and Alex Gordon had sub par seasons, the moves General Manager Dayton Moore made last off season to strengthen the rotation paid off big time. The Kansas City Royals led the American League in ERA at 3.45, a terrific improvement for a franchise that hasn’t had a good pitching staff in along time.

The Royals sliced nearly a full run from their 2012 ERA (4.30), so pitching had a huge impact on the success of the 2013 season.

It wasn’t all just pitching though. The Royals defense was the best in the league, and they had 3 Gold Glove winners, and two more finalists at their positions. A couple of the Royals young hitters also showed improvement at the plate.

It was an incredibly exciting season, especially after the All-Star break, and these were the most important players on the 2013 Kansas City Royals that won 86 games. Just click “Next”.