ESPN Chalk's Joe Peta is sharing his season win total projections for every MLB team, including a reason for optimism and pessimism.
Plus, he recommends an over/under play, or a pass. This is the entry for the Kansas City Royals.
Kansas City Royals
Reason for optimism: The entire fan base and clubhouse is still basking in the glow of last year's postseason run.
Reason for pessimism: The ingredients that mixed so well for short series dominance might not be enough to get back to the playoffs. Plus, Ned Yost is still the chef.
In advancing to their first World Series in 29 years, the Royals went 8-0 during the American League playoffs. Not only is it possible many baseball fans forget that, but they are most assuredly unaware of the dominance the Royals demonstrated in sweeping the Los Angeles Angels and Baltimore Orioles, the two teams in baseball with the most regular-season wins in 2014. Kansas City won its first five games against the Angels and Orioles without ever trailing at the end of an inning. (In fact, Kansas City trailed at the end of only two of the 68 innings they played in the American League DIvision Series and AL Championship Series.) If that seems like outlier dominance, it was.