The Royals need just three wins in their remaining nine games to avoid losing 90 (or a 90-loss pace) since 2017. The 2021 Royals may not have been very good but they were significantly better than their recent predecessors. That’s nice to know. Here’s hoping 2022 sees even more improvement.
If it does, today’s starter may be a part of it. Jon Heasley will be making his second major-league start tonight as the Royals face off against the Tigers in Comerica Park, Detroit. Heasley’s first start was nothing to write home about - except for the history made by having five pitchers from the same draft class all start a game in the same year for the team that drafted them - but it also wasn’t the complete tire fire we saw from some other 2018 draftee debuts.