Shades of 2011

Let me tell you a story: A team built on aggressive baserunning and timely hitting shocked the baseball world by busting into the playoffs for the first time in many years. Led by a manager whose old-school mentality was alternately maddening and lovable, a solid if unspectacular pitching staff, and a stellar bullpen, the team advanced further than anyone expected they would, culminating in an improbable trip to the World Series, where they were swatted down by Buster Posey, Madison Bumgarner, and the San Francisco Giants. The fans, most of whom would admit they had just been happy to be there, nevertheless longed for a trip back, for a second chance at glory. But the star pitcher left in free agency and the odds seemed long. Some analysts speculated the team might not even make the playoffs again. Yet when the American League Championship trophy was awarded, it was to a group of familiar faces…looking even stronger than the previous year, they were back in the World Series, ready to take care of unfinished business.

As a fan of that team, the 2011 Texas Rangers, you can see why I’m happy for the Kansas City Royals today.

The last time I was so invested in a non-Rangers World Series outcome was 2001, when the Arizona Diamondbacks walked off in Game 7 against a dynastic New York Yankees team (and even then, my glee at the result had a lot more to do with my jealousy-hatred of the Yankees than any love for an Arizona franchise younger than I was.) This year, Kansas City was the team I was rooting for to win it all the moment the Rangers were eliminated—more than the long-suffering Cubs, more than the traditionally hard-luck Mets, and certainly more than the Blue Jays, who had taken down my team in one of the weirdest games of all time. The Royals just seemed like, after coming so close last year, they deserved it.

They had gone through the gauntlet of another 162-game season, this time not as the hunters of “better” teams, but as the hunted. They had advanced through the playoff rounds one by one yet again, this time not as the plucky underdogs but as the defending A.L. champions. And this time, entering the World Series against an N.L. team with a flashier history than theirs, there were a lot more people predicting that they had a chance. Shades of 2011.

I wanted the Royals to win because they reminded me so much of my favorite Rangers team. Their speed, their youth, their heart-stopping tendency to play possum for 6 innings and erupt for dramatic comebacks in the final innings—it all felt so familiar. They got a football town to pay attention, not just for a few weeks but for a whole season; they got their stadium rocking with individual player chants that needed no prompting—every time the “Moooooose” cheer would begin for Mike Moustakas I could hear the thundering “NA-PO-LI” chant echo in my memory.

I’m happy for Kansas City because they now have what I wanted for my team 4 years ago. The 2011 Rangers endured what some baseball people have called the greatest World Series of all time—and I’m sure if you root for one of the other 29 teams in the majors, there’s a fair case for that designation. But for me that World Series was not great; it contained the darkest sports moments I have ever experienced and will ever experience…seriously, I know I’m only 26, but nothing could possibly be worse than Game 6. Nothing.

I’m happy for the Royals fans, for a town that loves its team. I spent a few days in Kansas City last year, and I had a wonderful time. Great music, incredible barbecue, easy to get around, nice people, easygoing vibe. I’m glad that city’s getting a championship parade, and I know the streets will be full hours before it starts and after it ends. The Royals and their fans deserve the ecstasy they’re feeling today.

I hope they know it doesn’t always end this way…even when it seems like it should. In sports, the good guys don’t always win. But I’m glad that, at least this time, they did. Way to go, Royals, sincerely. Just don’t get comfortable…I hear there are a few ballplayers in Arlington still looking to finish a job 5 years in the making.