ESPN Writer Assigns Royals Middling Letter Grade For April Performance

April sure was a confusing month to be a Kansas City Royals fan.

It was a month that saw the Royals hit like a bottom-five team in the sport, and included a six-game losing streak. But that streak was immediately followed by six straight wins, and the Royals finished the month a game above .500.

Other than that, there weren't many surprises for the Royals. Bobby Witt Jr. was predictably great, and as has become the norm, he didn't get nearly enough support from the supporting cast. The pitching staff more than pulled its weight, supported by Kris Bubic seamlessly filling Brady Singer's old spot in the starting rotation.

On Friday, ESPN's David Schoenfield assigned letter grades to all 30 teams for their April performances. And though it felt a bit harsh given that the piece was published the day after Kansas City won its ninth game of its last 10, Schoenfield assigned the Royals a straight "C."

"Outside of Bobby Witt. Jr. and Maikel Garcia, they haven't really hit at all, with a whole host of batters--Vinnie Pasquantino, Michael Massey, MJ Melendez and Hunter Renfroe-- all struggling. That's supposed to be the middle of the KC lineup and all four of those guys are hitting under .200," Schoenfield wrote.

"The bullpen has pitched much better than last season and the rotation has once again been a strength. Ace Cole Ragans is 1-1 with a 4.40 ERA, the worst ERA of the starters, but his peripherals remain outstanding, so he'll start winning some games -- if the Royals can score some runs behind him."

In particular, Pasquantino and Salvador Perez need to get going. Those two currently own OPS+ figures of 64 and 87, respectively (league average is 100). That's unacceptable from a team's three and four hitters, especially when a superstar like Witt is constantly getting on base in front of them.

However, this recent stretch of play has put the Royals firmly in the mix for the playoffs moving forward, and as long as they can find something resembling an average offense from here on out, they should be in decent shape.

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