The Kansas City Royals are still alive in the American League Wild Card chase. They sit only two games back of the Seattle Mariners for the third and final Wild Card spot. They also have a big series coming next week in which they will face off against the Mariners. That could determine their playoff fate as the rest of the 2025 regular season plays out.
Kansas City’s offense has been a major problem this season, but it has also shown some flashes of brilliance since acquiring Mike Yastrzemski at the trade deadline. Still, their road to the playoffs isn’t going to be an easy one.
Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic outlined exactly what needs to happen for the Royals to make it back to October for the second consecutive year.
Sep 2, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. (7) celebrates in the dugout after scoring a run in the third inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter Aiken-Imagn Images / Peter Aiken-Imagn Images
“It’s difficult to get excited about a team that ranks 28th in the majors in runs per game, ahead of only Colorado and Pittsburgh. But if the Royals can maintain their equilibrium on their upcoming trip to Cleveland and Philadelphia, they’ll get a crack at home against the team they’re chasing, Seattle. Bobby Witt Jr., who missed the last two games with back spasms, is needed back ASAP,” Rosenthal wrote on Monday.
The Royals have been without Witt for a couple of games. If he goes down, so too does the offense. The 73-70 Royals have a big stretch of games coming up. After their road trip to Cleveland and Philadelphia, they’ll return home for not only their series against the Mariners, but also a matchup with the Toronto Blue Jays.
Then, they’ll close out the season with series against the Los Angeles Angels and Athletics. But there are plenty of opportunities for Kansas City to cement themselves into a Wild Card spot over the final three weeks of the regular season. They won 86 games last year and were the second Wild Card team, but they are still alive in this year’s hunt.
It will certainly be interesting to see if the Royals can take advantage of their opportunities to gain ground and secure a spot. The offense needs to wake up a bit, and as Rosenthal notes, they need Witt back as soon as possible in order to stay afloat while playing a tough schedule.
We’ll see if the Royals can get the job done.
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