3 Big Observations From the Royals' Season-Opening Series vs. Twins

3. The Bullpen Might Still Be a Mess

Not everything from the first few games was a positive. After all, that's how you wind up 1-2. We'll save our concerns about the offense for another time, but the bullpen currently ranks fourth-to-last in ERA (7.88).

Chris Stratton gave up two runs in the top of the ninth on Opening Day to put the game out of reach, then new closer Will Smith imploded on Saturday and gave up four earned runs, allowing a pair of hits and walks in the process.

Again, it's very early in the season and there's plenty of time for the Royals to turn things around. After watching last year's bullpen fumble lead after lead though, it was a difficult first couple of games to stomach.

In order for this year's Royals to be competitive, we have to avoid seeing stat lines like that one. Smith and a punchless offense essentially wasted a phenomenal debut from Seth Lugo. You can survive with a mediocre bullpen if your starting pitching is among the best in MLB, but it's difficult to survive with one of the worst bullpens in the sport instead of just an average one.

Sunday's two innings of shutout baseball was an encouraging sign and I hope we see more of that moving forward. We've got a tough test coming up against the powerful Orioles - fingers crossed the bullpen is ready for it.

More Kansas City Royals News:

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.