Kansas City Royals Series Grades: First Win Of 2017 Comes Against Astros
By Ben Almquist
Kansas City Royals Series Grades
Game 1: Royals Win 5-1
The Kansas City Royals got exactly what they needed in the series opener against the Astros. The Royals came out and looked completely different from the team that got swept in Minnesota. The fact they looked strong against a team with high expectations like Houston is definitely encouraging.
W. Kansas City Royals. GAME ONE. B+. A stark contrast from the series in Minnesota as the Royals looked like a completely different team in this one. This was a solid win over a good team.
Jason Vargas put up a strong performance to earn a win in this game. In fact, it was his first win since 2015. The bullpen also came out and looked good, for the first time this year. There was still a minor issue with walks, but there was no catastrophic seventh inning. This is a major step in the right direction for the Royals pitching staff.
On the offensive side, the bats really came to life in this game. The Royals hitters were able to get people on base, and that led to runs. Salvador Perez blasted his second home run in two games while Alex Gordon drove in a pair of runs. That is the kind of offense that KC needs from its core players.