MLB insider pinpoints how the Royals can still earn Wild Card berth

Despite an unfortunate September slide for the Kansas City Royals, the Kauffman Stadium denizens have been lucky enough to see most of the major AL playoff contenders also hit the skids.

Because of those slumps, the Royals are still just 2.5 games out of the Wild Card and only a game behind the Texas Rangers for the 4th spot in the WC standings. In other words, they still have a very real chance of making the postseason if they still have another winning streak in them.

David Schoenfield of ESPN detailed exactly how KC could still sneak into the playoffs despite struggles both offensively and in their pitching staff. In short, there's a very good chance to make the postseason in much the same way they did it last fall.

How the Kansas City Royals can stay alive in the AL Wild Card race, per ESPN

"It might hinge on a three-game series at home against Seattle in mid-September," Schoenfield wrote of the Kansas City Royals' chances. "The Mariners have a recent history of falling just short of the postseason -- including last year, when the Royals clinched a wild-card spot with 86 wins and the Mariners won 85 (the Mariners blew an 8-0 lead against Kansas City in June, which loomed large at the end of the season)."

"Seattle has struggled on the road, so the aforementioned series can catapult the Royals back into the postseason," he wrote.

While the ESPN analyst wrote that a few days before the Royals continued to struggle, he's not entirely wrong by a long shot. The Mariners are even colder than Kansas City and have already seen their wild-card lead slip, while the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox have both been red hot.

The Kansas City Royals also finish up September with a soft schedule, including one more game against the Los Angeles Angels. Now they just need to start winning.