The Royals at the halfway mark

Halfway through the 2022 season, the Royals are not where they were hoping to be. Last year’s hot start in April brought some hope that perhaps the rebuild was further along than expected, and even a summer swoon was hand-waved away as being due to injuries to key hitters and part of the lumps you take integrating young pitchers to the big leagues. The expectation was that with some more experience, the pitchers would begin to take hold in the rotation, and young hitters like Bobby Witt Jr. and MJ Melendez would energize the lineup. The Royals weren’t expecting to contend necessarily, but there was hope they could flirt with a winning record.

Instead, the team fell flat on their face.…