Bob Lutz: Can the Royals do it again?

Edinson Volquez, the pitcher the Kansas City Royals signed to fill some of the gap created by the departure of rotation ace James Shields, had a 6.33 ERA in spring training and allowed 34 hits in 21.1 innings.

And he wasn’t as bad as left-hander Jason Vargas, who allowed seven home runs in 21.2 innings and had a 7.89 ERA.

Outside of veteran right-hander Jeremy Guthrie, none of the pitchers who are in Kansas City’s starting rotation to begin the 2015 season had much of a spring.

But the Royals hit in Surprise, Ariz.

It’s a long way from Surprise to Kauffman Stadium, where KC will open defense of its American League championship Monday afternoon against the new-and-improved Chicago White Sox.

The biggest question about the Royals is whether they’ll hit in the spacious park they call home. Last year, Kansas City was 47-34 away from Kauffman but just 42-39 inside the stadium that Ewing built.

There is a whole lot of confusion about Kansas City in 2015, even after the Royals became baseball’s darlings with their run to the World Series last season after sweeping through Oakland, the Los Angeles Angels and Baltimore Orioles to the tune of 8-0.

The Royals were almost the kings of October. But thanks to San Francisco lefty Madison Bumgarner, they couldn’t quite seal the deal in Game 7 of the World Series.

Now what?

Have the Royals run the gauntlet to being an annual American League contender? Or were they a one-season — perhaps even a one-month — flash in the pan.

Because Shields wasn’t dominant in the 2014 postseason, the Royals didn’t grip too much about letting him go to San Diego. But Shields was Kansas City’s best pitcher for two seasons and a veteran leader in the clubhouse. He’s a bulldog whose intensity probably masks some of the inevitable deterioration in his pitching stuff after so many innings.

Volquez had a good season in Pittsburgh in 2014 but he has a history of being erratic. There is risk in putting too much trust in him.

Young starters Danny Duffy and Yordano Ventura, recently signed to a long-term contract, are loaded with ability. But how will they stand up to even larger roles now that Shields has departed? Ventura gets the Opening Day start and, given the electricity pulsing through his right arm, it could be his first of many.

Meanwhile, Vargas and Guthrie are right where they belong, at the back of the Kansas City rotation. If they’re forced to move up, look out.

Kansas City’s formula for winning last season was to get the game to the seventh inning and let Kevin Herrera, Wade Davis and Greg Holland finish up. This season, you can added Luke Hochevar, back from elbow surgery, to the mix.

Bullpens are like the Kansas weather – they can change without notice. As good as those guys were last season, it’s 2015 now. You wouldn’t expect a drastic dip in effectiveness, but Herrera, Davis and Holland in a combined 206 games last season covering a little more than 200 innings. That’s a lot of nights answering the bullpen phone.

I’m not saying the Royals can’t follow up 2014 and be even better. But I have questions and so do even the most loyal Royals supporters.

What will Kendrys Morales and Alex Rios do for the offense that Billy Butler and Nori Aoki weren’t doing? You’d like to think they’d hit a bunch more home runs because both have some power in their resumes. But they’re also coming off injuries and they’re no spring chickens.

Can Mike Moustakas, so good in the 2014 postseason, keep it up offensively? Or does his bat turn back into a wet blanket?

Is Lorenzo Cain a budding superstar in center field?

The Royals are set in a lot of ways. That’s a sign of a good team. Kansas City was the best defensive team in baseball last season and they have the postseason highlight reel to prove it.

At their best, the Royals are no doubt a contender again in the American League Central with Detroit, Cleveland and perhaps the White Sox, whose offseason upheaval was one of the most aggressive in the game.

The Royals tried to keep their blueprint from fading. There were changes, yes, but the core of the team’s philosophy remains intact. Play defense and close out games.

It would be nice to hit a few more home runs, nice if Volquez can be what he was last season with the Pirates and nice of Morales and Rios can find a little of that youthful magic.

We’ve gotten almost 800 words into this column without mentioning Ned Yost. Something tells me he’ll be a factor, too. In one way or another.

Enjoy the season. It starts for Royals fans on what promises to be a bright, sunshiny Monday afternoon at The K.

This story was originally published April 5, 2015 at 6:40 PM with the headline "Bob Lutz: Can the Royals do it again?."