Kansas City Royals Midseason Awards: Moose or Salvy for MVP?

Handing out midseason awards is clearly about looking back at what happened in the first half of the season, but it can also give a glimpse at what to expect the rest of the way.

What becomes abundantly clear when sifting through the Royals’ first-half statistics, more guys need to step up if this team is going to continue a postseason push.

The offense has had to rely far too often on Moustakas and Perez. Eric Hosmer has been solid after a terrible start, while Lorenzo Cain was amazing in June, but that still isn’t enough to carry an offense through September.

On the pitching side of things, injuries have derailed the season of every starter, save Vargas. The pressure on him to carry the rotation the rest of the way could be asking too much of the 34-year-old.

However, if the staff can stay healthy in the second half, there is no reason why Danny Duffy, Ian Kennedy and even Jason Hammel can’t help take the load off of Vargas.

In turn, the staff should also be able to lighten the burden on the bullpen. Kelvin Herrera and Joakim Soria have struggled at times holding on to leads at the back end, but being able to bridge the gap has also been an issue.

Next: Recapping topsy-turvy first half

If some additional players can step up over the coming months, maybe the Royals’ postseason award winners will differ from the midseason honorees. Perhaps even Moss will rise up and challenge Moose and Salvy for MVP. … Yeah, that is probably asking a bit too much.