Despite struggles, confidence never wavered

KANSAS CITY -- Now that it's happened, manager Ned Yost says that the Royals players believed all along they could turn things around after a dismal May.

"I think it was something they felt like they could do all along. I don't think it's a great surprise to anybody that we did it. The feeling and the attitude was that once we get on a roll, we'd get right back into it," Yost said.

"In my first year in Atlanta in '91, we were 10 games out at the All-Star break and ended up going to the World Series. It's a long year, you've got to be prepared for a long year, and you've got to be able to handle the ups and downs of the season."