Saddening Stat Analysis of KC's Slow Start

The Kansas City Royals spent their first week of 2022 struggling, and we cannot analyze that shaky start without talking about KC's revered star-in-the-making, Bobby Witt Jr.

After a thrilling start to the season, KC's prodigious third baseman has contributed very little offensively. Bobby Witt Jr. has 24 at-bats, three hits and eight strikeouts. Bobby isn't the only Royal currently unable to help with the stick. He's one of five Royals full-timers with a batting average at .200 or below. Carlos Santana, Adalberto Mondesi, Whit Merrifield and Bobby Witt Jr. all have an OPS below .500. So far, KC's team OPS of .589 is the worst in the AL and the second-worst in the MLB.

It's a good thing their pitching staff is so good. Just kidding - it's the worst in baseball right now. Are you excited about the young studs in the Royals' bullpen? Me too, but they also rank last in the MLB with a combined bullpen ERA of 6.67. A Kansas City starter has yet to put a win on their 2022 stat sheet.

That all sounds like a bummer, so how about some positive notes? Andrew Benintendi looks like a pillar of the offense in this limited sample size, batting .381 with 4 RBI in six games. Brad Keller threw six scoreless innings in his first appearance. He faces off with the Detroit Tigers tonight in the second of a four-game series at the K. For what it's worth, Detroit's team OPS of .648 ranks 23rd league-wide - the worst team OPS in the division aside from Kansas City's.

Spring Training Battles For Starting Time Start in Surprise

We're already seven games into the Kansas City Royals' 2018 spring training schedule. That means we can already over-analyze some stats! The departure of KC's championship core means several starting jobs are up for grabs this season. Many intriguing competitions for these jobs are already in full swing.

The Royals need some young sluggers like Jorge Soler to exceed expectations if they want any hope to sniff the postseason in the next three years. A .211/.318/.737 slash line, a 1.055 OPS, 7 RBI and 7 K's through 19 at-bats is a proper exhibition of the best and worst of Soler. He desperately needs to reduce his strikeout rate, but KC desperately needs some power in their sub-par lineup. Much has been made about Soler's offseason improvements, but the jury's still out on if his balanced new batting stance will improve his ability to hit for contact. He still looks studly when he barrels the ball and clueless when he gets K'ed.

The early competition for middle infield is off to a strong start, as well. Adalberto Mondesi is hitting consistently in his admittedly tiny sample of 13 at-bats, but Whit Merrifield looks determined to take firm hold of the starting gig at second base. Whit's 1.588 OPS through 17 at-bats leads the team at this point. Merrifield's positional flexibility complicates the matter of who will start the season at second base, but his skills at other positions could help both him and Mondesi get consistent at-bats in 2018.

Another key area of change for KC this year is the bullpen. Several relievers vying for big-league jobs started spring training with impressive performances. Kevin McCarthy, Brian Flynn, Burch Smith and non-roster invitee Kevin Lenik all have unblemished ERA's after pitching at least four innings. It's still very, very early, but pitching well in early March is tough, so this still bodes well for KC.

Doug LaCerte writes about local sports, drinks wine and occasionally does Twitter stuff @DLaC67.