3 takeaways from a nice KC Royals series split

The KC Royals, their status as one of the majors' worst teams preserved after dropping two of three to the Tigers, arrived in Florida late Wednesday for a four-game series with the best team in the big leagues. Sweeping Tampa was out of the question; even the idea of a split seemed too far-fetched to consider.

The Royals, though, fooled everyone. They headed home late Sunday with a hard-earned split and, had Taylor Clarke not spoiled Daniel Lynch's quality start Sunday by handing the Rays two late runs (more on that in a moment), they might have taken the series 3-1.

But even with Sunday's disappointing loss, taking two from the Rays is nothing to sneer at, especially for a team bracing for a 100-loss season. And while the two wins won't turn this club around, some things stand out from KC's four days in Florida. Let's look at three.

How much does a starter's first win mean for him and the KC Royals?

Bound to happen sooner or later was what finally occurred Saturday. After the Rays redeemed themselves from Thursday night's opening loss by blowing out KC 11-3 Friday, the Royals rewarded starter Jordan Lyles with enough run support to negate the 4-0 hole he dug for them after only two innings.

Two things made the victory especially significant: Lyles pitched four superb innings after his rocky start, and the win was his first as a Royal after going a major league record 15 starts without a win to begin the season.

How good was Lyles after spotting the Rays four runs? Helped by a timely double-play, he faced the minimum three batters in the third, allowed only a single in the fourth, and retired the Rays in order in the fifth and sixth. By the time the bullpen took over to begin the seventh, the Royals had scored eight times to take a lead they wouldn't relinquish.

But other than the fact he finally won, the triumph probably won't mean much in the long run. Kansas City has already been defeated too many times for it to make any difference in the season's outcome, and pitching wins no longer mean what they once did. But then again, one win is better than none.

Is a KC Royals pitcher getting better while another might be getting worse?

Daniel Lynch was a walking question mark when, after beginning the season on the Injured List, he rejoined the Royals and made his first start of the year May 28. After all, he lost 13 games in 2022 and hadn't pitched particularly well in the Cactus League (0-2, 6.32 in six games) before suffering a rotator cuff injury before spring camp broke.

He limited Washington to two runs in 5.1 inning his first game back, then lost his next three starts before shutting out Detroit for seven innings and earning his first win last Tuesday. And if his effort Sunday against the Rays is any indication, he appears to be on the right path.

The third inning homer he coughed up to Jose Siri accounted for the only run Tampa nicked him for, and he walked only one batter in six innings. That lone run he yielded is the only one he's given up in his last 14 innings.

That Lynch had thrown 90 pitches when the sixth inning ended probably explains why manager Matt Quatraro switched to reliever Taylor Clarke for the seventh. Unfortunately, Clarke wasn't as good as Lynch—after fanning leadoff man Luke Raley, he walked Siri and gave up a single to Yandy Díaz; Díaz reached second and Siri third on Bobby Witt Jr.'s throwing error.

Clarke then walked Wander Franco intentionally and uncorked a wild pitch to Harold Ramírez that allowed Siri to score, Díaz to take third, and Franco to make second. Ramírez's sac fly then scored Díaz to give Tampa the 3-1 lead they never lost.

His one inning (Aroldis Chapman pitched a scoreless eighth) marked Clarke's third straight concerning performance. He almost cost the Royals Thursday's opening game win when he blew a save opportunity by giving up three runs and five hits to the seven batters he faced in two-thirds of an inning; three days before that, he took over a 4-1 lead over Detroit from Jordan Lyles and allowed two inherited runners, and three he put aboard himself, to score, and took the 6-4 loss to the Tigers.

So, Quatraro must be wondering if Lynch is rounding into form while Clarke might be losing his. We shall see.