Have you noticed how well the Royals are playing? Saturday's loss notwithstanding, they've been on fire. Well, not literally, of course; that would be bad. But before last night, they'd won six straight and 11 out of 12. They even managed to extricate themselves from last place for a moment.

Sure, they got to play the Giants and Rockies during that stretch, but they've also had to face a tough St. Louis club, winning four of five against the Cardinals so far. The pitching staff is starting to Meche (sorry, couldn't resist!) and the bats have warmed up this month:

Apr: .259/.316/.364, 3.70 R/G
May: .258/.309/.358, 3.48 R/G
Jun: .270/.323/.447, 5.12 R/G

In particular, David DeJesus (.361/.426/.608), Jose Guillen (.353/.374/.647), and everyone's favorite savior Mike Aviles (.333/.360/.580) have provided a serious spark. No, it may not be enough to get the Royals into contention (although as of this writing they're only 8 1/2 games out of first place), but it could be enough to keep them out of the cellar. That may not seem like much, but for a team that has finished each of the past four seasons in last place, it's a start. Baby steps...