The Royals may be staring at the end of their postseason hopes, but the final stretch of the season still gives them plenty of power to shake up October.
Kansas City sits nine games behind the third AL Wild Card spot as of September 7, which leaves the club on the brink of being mathematically eliminated from contention. That part of the season picture looks bleak.
What doesn’t look bleak is the damage the Royals can still do to everyone else. Of their 17 remaining games, 14 come against teams currently holding playoff spots.
At 64-81, the Royals are all but locked into their first finish below .500 since 2023. For a franchise that has spent years trying to climb back after its World Series run more than a decade ago, that’s a rough place to land. The last two seasons had pointed toward progress, but injuries and a string of down years from key players have pushed the 2026 season off course.
Even if the Royals can’t carve out a path to the bracket themselves, they can still leave a mark on it. Their home series against the Diamondbacks comes first, and Arizona is hanging on to the final National League Wild Card spot. After that, Kansas City heads out on what might be its most meaningful road trip of the year.
That trip begins in Boston, where the Royals will face the Red Sox in a three-game set. Boston is sitting comfortably in the second Wild Card position, but the Red Sox still have eyes on the top spot and the home-field edge that would come with it for a likely Wild Card Series. Kansas City has the chance to complicate that path by winning the series.
The Royals could do even more damage against the Astros. Houston leads the Rangers by just two games in the AL West, so a strong showing from Kansas City could throw that race into chaos and add another layer to the Wild Card picture.
Then comes the final week at home, with series against the White Sox and the Guardians. As of September 7, Chicago leads Cleveland by three games, and that kind of margin can disappear fast.
In two weeks, the Royals could wind up having a direct hand in deciding which of those two teams takes the AL Central. They could also stop one from earning a bye or even send one packing entirely.
Kansas City hasn’t exactly been sharp lately, entering September with a 2-4 record. But the final few weeks still give the Royals a real chance to make noise, and maybe have some fun doing it.
The stretch could also give Carter Jensen a stage to push his case in the AL Rookie of the Year race. Anything can happen.
In Other News...
Salvador Perez Faces A Royals Reality That Could Change His Role
Salvador Perez has spent much of the second half in a different spot than Royals fans are used to seeing him, with the veteran dealing with an elbow injury that has limited his time behind the plate. Carter Jensen has handled more of the catching duties, leaving Perez to work as the designated hitter more often while the club tries to manage his workload and keep his bat in the lineup.
At 36, Perez is in the final year of his two-year contract and still has not decided whether he will keep playing beyond 2027. For now, his focus is on finishing the season strong, getting healthy in the offseason and staying part of Kansas Citys push to get back into playoff contention next year, even if the shape of his role keeps changing. [Read more 🡒]
Royals Quietly Moved On From A Veteran Depth Bet That Went Nowhere
Brandon Drurys season in the Royals organization never really found traction, and by late in the 2026 campaign Kansas City had quietly moved on. The veteran infielder spent most of the year in Triple-A Omaha, where the bat never provided the kind of depth help the club was hoping for when it brought him in as an experienced option.
Drury is now a free agent, but his path forward comes with an immediate limitation: he is not eligible for postseason play this year. For the Royals, it closes the book on a low-risk depth bet that never turned into much, and it leaves the front office with one less veteran name in reserve as the season pushes toward its finish. [Read more 🡒]
Royals Offense Is Giving Fans One More Reason To Watch September
Bobby Witt Jr. kept the Royals recent surge moving with another blast in the win over Arizona, and rookie Carter Jensen added a homer of his own as September continues to offer Kansas City plenty to monitor beyond the standings. Witts power has remained a central part of the lineup all season, while Jensens rise has given the club another young bat to track closely as the year winds down.
There was also encouraging news on the pitching side, with Tony Gonsolin turning in a successful rehab outing for Triple-A Omaha and Angeibel Gomez continuing to impress in the minors. For a Royals team trying to build momentum, the combination of established production, rookie growth and rehab progress is exactly the sort of late-season mix that can make the final weeks worth watching. [Read more 🡒]