The Royals capped a perfect homestand on Sunday and then took their winning ways on the road. Now they’re the hottest team in baseball.
Their 5-3 win over the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on Tuesday night pushed the Royals’ win streak to nine games, marking the longest win streak in the Majors and Kansas City’s longest win streak since it went on a nine-game run from July 19-28, 2017.
Just like we’ve seen over the past week-plus, there were plenty of heroes Tuesday: Seth Lugo worked his way through five innings of one-run ball. Salvador Perez provided the go-ahead hit in the fifth inning, and the rest of the lineup stepped up for insurance runs later. Reliever Nate Pearson, facing the team that picked him in the first round of the 2017 MLB Draft, worked out of a dicey situation to put together a scoreless inning.
And the game-ending play was perhaps the most electric of the night, with Isaac Collins cutting off a two-out hit in the gap from Nathan Lukes and finding Bobby Witt Jr. for the relay throw to Tyler Tolbert to tag out Lukes trying to advance to second base.
Fundamental and team baseball has gotten the Royals to this point. Here are three other encouraging trends over the past nine games:
Pasquatch sighting
A lineup that included all of the Royals’ core hitters lasted just a few days last week before Maikel Garcia hit the injured list again. But the return of Vinnie Pasquantino should not be overlooked.
Since coming off the IL on Aug. 17, Pasquantino has gone 11-for-29 (.379) with five walks, four doubles, two home runs and five RBIs – without a strikeout in eight games. He’s hitting the ball hard, he’s moving runners and bringing them in and he even followed in Perez’s footsteps on Tuesday with a stolen base of his own.
While, yes, it’s a small sample size, that is the hitter the Royals have been missing from the middle of the lineup in 2026. It’s the hitter Kansas City was counting on from Pasquantino this season before an abysmal April, a mediocre May and an injury-riddled June and July.
More importantly, it’s the hitter the Royals need him to be next year.
“This is way more fun,” the always honest Pasquantino said over the weekend.
Hitting is so individualized, but it’s probably not a coincidence that Pasquantino getting hot has lifted the rest of the lineup.
Speaking of the lineup
The Royals’ offense has scored 55 runs in these past nine games, averaging 6.1 per game with a .304/.391/.488 slash line. That on-base percentage leads the Majors in that span. They’re also hitting .333 (29-for-87) with runners in scoring position across the nine games, as well as a .343 average with two outs, including Perez’s go-ahead hit Tuesday.
They’ve gotten contributions up and down the lineup, but watching Pasquantino, Perez and Witt click like they have before feels right, too.
It’s important to remember that this is the same group that did not produce in April and May, and the Royals should still look to upgrade their offense this offseason. But Kansas City isn’t giving up on its core of hitters. There are still injuries the Royals are dealing with, including Jac Caglianone nursing right ankle soreness and Michael Massey being further evaluated after hitting his head when falling to the ground on a throw Tuesday, although it sounds like the Royals are optimistic he’ll be OK.
But this is the same group that will be relied upon in 2027. This current run (and strong second half) will not wipe away questions the Royals face with their lineup next year, but it does provide evidence that this lineup can work.
Pitching is still the foundation
Starter Noah Cameron’s turnaround has not only been one of the best storylines of the past month, but also the most important for the future. The Royals know they can rely on him next year, which helps them out as they rebuild their staff this offseason due to the injuries they’ve sustained this year.
Over the win streak, the rest of the Royals’ pitching staff has joined Cameron on the rise. The rotation has stabilized with a 2.55 ERA over the past nine games, and the bullpen is starting to find a working recipe, too.
Pearson and Steven Cruz at the back end of games can be shaky – Tuesday was evidence of that – but they both have big, strikeout stuff that can get them out of jams. That’s something the Royals have lacked for a lot of this season. It’s something they can build on, too.