Around the Kingdom: James Shields, Salvador Perez, Travis Kelce, Matt Besler

The Royals reclaimed sole possession of first place in the A.L. Central by winning 3-0 behind yet another dominating start by James Shields.

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Talk about living up to your nickname!

With 18 games remaining in the season, the Royals hold a precarious 1-game lead. That advantage is truly razor-thin when you remember that KC has yet to complete a suspended game against Cleveland where the Royals trail 4-2 in the bottom of the 10th.

Wednesday’s game was really close to being a ‘must-win” situation.

The Chiefs will play their 2nd game of the season against Denver. Right now, no one expects Kansas City to emerge victorious after their lame performance against the Titans in their home opener. Complicating matters is an injury report that includes De’Anthony Thomas, RT Jeff Allen, and Tamba Hali.

The Chiefs aren’t the only KC-area team struggling with injuries. Sporting KC has its share of ailing players to go along with a 4-match losing streak, which includes World Cup standout Matt Besler.

KANSAS CITY ROYALS

Rany on the Royals – Rany onKA Big Game James and Jarrod Dyson‘s pickoff:

"Big Game James pitched an absolute gem with no margin of error in his last start, blanking the Yankees for 8.1 innings before Wade Davis finished off the first 1-0 victory at Yankee Stadium in the history of the Royals. They’ll need the same from him tonight. His legacy as a Royal, and the legacy of The Trade, will be in large part shaped by what happens tonight."

Kings of Kauffman – Royals offense looking lost:

"The 2014 Kansas City Royals are on the verge of becoming just that: a fleeting memory on the radar of baseball history. The reason for the sad music intro and the darker, closer camera angles now is that the Royals offense has gone cold."

Royals Review – Salvador Perez still has a bright future despite 2nd half slump:

"Now maybe Perez does in fact carry his poor 2nd half into next year and beyond. That would be an utter collapse, but a return to his career walk/swing rates, and BABIP should return him to around the same level of player we’ve grown to love out of Perez. There’s really no reason to think that Perez’s last 180 plate appearances are more important than the previous 1300 ones or that it is going to be sustained."

KANSAS CITY CHIEFS

Arrowhead Addict – De’Anthony Thomas and Jeff Allen miss practice
Arrowhead Pride – Three Chiefs who should see more playing time in Denver:

"With that caveat in mind, I ask again: Why on Earth aren’t Travis Kelce, Vance Walker, and Anthony Sherman on the field?"

SPORTING KC

Reporting KC – injury prognosis for Matt Besler and Eric Kronberg:

"Eric Kronberg is nearing a return to the Sporting KC starting lineup. He practiced in full, without any precatious today for the first time since fracturing his hand, according to Sam McDowell of the KC Star (paywall). It sounds like Kronberg is at least a week or two away from returning to the starting lineup.Also according to the report, Matt Besler was officially diagnosed with a similar injury, except it’s of the broken–not fractured– variety. McDowell writes that Besler will be limited by a cast for the “next 6-8 weeks.”"

KANSAS JAYHAWKS

KUSports.com – QB Jake Cozart motivated by missed chances:

"“When it was time to throw the ball down field, I tried that,” Cozart said. “I missed Nigel (King) on an out route that I wish I could have back. I keep dreaming about it. And also a deep ball to Nick (Harwell). He dove for it, right on his fingertips. A few plays we wish we could have back, icing on the cake, that would have changed the whole momentum of the game.”"

There you have it KC fans—the news Around the Kingdom.

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