Last October, the Kansas City Royals left Yankee Stadium battered but unbowed. They had just wrapped up a gritty ALDS fight against baseball’s biggest brand, proving their young roster belonged on the October stage. That hard-fought series felt like a launching pad, a prelude to a team on the rise, ready to punch above its weight and shake up the American League.
However, one year later, the vibe in Kansas City is less about excitement and more about regret. The Royals are back in the ALDS facing the same Bronx buzzsaw, but instead of riding momentum, they’re dragging disappointment. Expectations were higher, the division was weak, and the roster was primed for reinforcements. And yet… the front office barely moved. No aggressive spending. No headline-making trades. Just a lot of banking on “internal growth,” a phrase fans are growing tired of hearing.
“I think overall the sense around the league is it’s been a fairly underwhelming year for the Royals so far,” co-host Brian McKeon said on a recent episode of the Locked On Yankees podcast. “They’re not playing up to expectations; they should be a lot better than they are.”
That criticism doesn’t just point to on-field struggles. It cuts deeper, toward how Kansas City approached the offseason. After pushing the Yankees in October and watching the AL Central remain wide open, many expected the Royals to act aggressively. Instead, the front office chose restraint. No major free-agent moves. No bold trades. Just patience. And patience doesn’t sell in a league where windows slam shut quickly.
“They’re another one of those teams that falls into the slot of should have spent more money than they did,” McKeon noted. “When you have a young team that’s ready to strike and you don’t spend the money, especially with a lackluster division that they play in.” That opportunity may already be slipping away. The bullpen has cracked under pressure. The lineup, outside of a few bright spots, has struggled to string together consistent production. The Royals are chasing games and answers.
Meanwhile, the Yankees bring firepower and urgency. They did what contenders do: identify needs, make upgrades, and stay relentless. That’s what separates postseason hopefuls from postseason locks. So now, as the Royals stare down the same team that brought out their best last fall, the question lingers: What if they had spent like a team ready to win? They didn’t. And the scoreboard this week may tell them exactly what that costs.
Yankees reinforce, Royals retreat
The Yankees didn’t just reload, they roared into the offseason with purpose. After a disappointing exit in 2024, New York made clear they weren’t going to stand pat. They went out and grabbed Max Fried, one of the top arms on the market, to anchor their rotation. They strengthened their bullpen by trading for Devin Williams and gave the offense a jolt by adding both Paul Goldschmidt and Cody Bellinger, veteran bats with postseason pedigree. That’s not tinkering, that’s building a contender with intention.
Meanwhile, the Royals took the opposite route, and now they’re feeling the weight of that decision. With the AL Central wide open and their young core entering a breakout window, Kansas City had every reason to be aggressive. But instead of chasing high-impact pieces, they placed their faith in internal growth. No frontline starter. No middle-of-the-order bat. Not even a serious bullpen upgrade. They watched opportunities pass and gambled on continuity.
That gamble hasn’t paid off. While the Yankees added proven firepower, the Royals left their young roster exposed. Injuries and inconsistency have magnified the gaps. The rotation has been overworked, the bullpen lacks a reliable closer, and the lineup struggles when Bobby Witt Jr. isn’t carrying the load. It’s not just a talent gap, it’s a preparation gap. And as the Yankees come to town looking like a postseason machine, the contrast couldn’t be more glaring.
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