There's no doubt that the Kansas City Royals have not played to their potential this season. They entered Friday's contest against the Detroit Tigers 17-21 despite having a roster including two-time All-MLB First Team shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., 2025 All-Star third baseman Maikel Garcia, nine-time All-Star catcher Salvador Perez, and 2024 All-Star starting pitchers Seth Lugo and Cole Ragans.

However, the Royals also entered Friday just 2.5 games behind the Cleveland Guardians for first place in the AL Central. The New York Yankees, Tampa Bay Rays, Athletics, and the Guardians were the only AL teams above .500.

It's too early to dive any deeper into the standings, but Kansas City's proximity to the top of the division shows that there's no reason for fans to give up on the team.

Kansas City was 6-4 over its last 10 games entering Friday and had scored multiple runs in six of seven contests in May. They're in a much-needed hot streak after starting the season 11-17.

One of the main reasons for the Royals' recent improvement is first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino, who was slashing .290/.290/.516 in May entering Friday. The 28-year-old slashed just .167/.269/.344 in April.

Kansas City needs Pasquantino at his best, as he's one of its foundational players. The 6-foot-3, 245-pounder is coming off a career season in 2025, when he slashed .264/.323/.475 with 32 homers and 113 RBIs over 160 games.

Meanwhile, the Royals have also gotten elite production from multiple pitchers. For example, starting pitcher Michael Wacha allowed two runs over seven innings in Monday's 6-2 win over the Guardians, and setup man Matt Strahm had logged scoreless outings in nine of his previous 10 outings entering Friday. Fellow relievers Nick Mears and Daniel Lynch IV also had 1.98 and 1.72 ERAs, respectively.

Overall, the early part of the season has shown that the AL Central race is wide open. There's no juggernaut in the division, and Kansas City still has plenty of time to rise the ranks if it keeps playing like it has recently.

After Friday's game, the Royals will host the Tigers again on Saturday and Sunday before hitting the road to face the Chicago White Sox and St. Louis Cardinals. After that, they'll host the Boston Red Sox, Seattle Mariners, and the Yankees before finishing the month against the Texas Rangers on the road.

Wacha will start on Saturday against right-hander Ty Madden, with the first pitch at 7:10 p.m. ET.