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I have to admit that I'm warming up, just a little bit, to these 2009 Royals.

Yes, it's mostly because of Zack Greinke. But it's more than that.

For many years, the Royals offended my sensibilities. Not just because they lost. Because of how they lost. Eight or nine years ago, I came up with a silly little thing called Beane Count, which was a way of looking at how teams fared in a couple of sabermetrics-friendly measures: home runs and walks. How many you get, and how many you give up.

Here's how the Royals ranked in the American League Beane Count from 2002 through 2008: 13th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 14th, and 12th. You might think that they could have, just by getting a little bit lucky here or there, broken into the top 10 for a season. But this organization was run so phenomenally poorly that it just never happened.

Another important thing that never happened: A Royal pitcher striking out an enemy batter. Well, it rarely happened, anyway. Here's how the staff ranked in strikeouts from 2002 through 2007: 13th, 13th, 14th, 12th, 14th, and 13th. As you know, pitchers who strike out few batters put an immense amount of pressure on themselves and the fielders who love them. Last season, with Greinke joining Gil Meche in the rotation, the Royals jumped all the way to seventh in the league in strikeouts; it was their first top-10 finish since 1998 and their best showing since 1994 (when power pitchers David Cone, Kevin Appier, and Tom Gordon anchored the staff).

For many years, then, the Royals didn't do the things you have to do to win. Their hitters didn't hit home runs or draw walks. Their pitchers didn't limit home runs or walks, or strike out anyone at all. Last season seemed like a small step forward, with Meche and Greinke doing their thing. The other stuff, though ... As usual, the Royals finished with a decent batting average but completely crashed in the important categories: 13th in home runs, 14th in walks. The more things change ... right?

Which is why I was brought up short while watching the game on TV last night, and heard the following exchange between broadcasters Ryan Lefebvre and Frank White during a David DeJesus at-bat:

Ryan: [Royals Hitting coach] Kevin Seitzer saying in spring training that no matter what the result is, if a hitter sees at least eight pitches, it's a quality at-bat, and the Royals have just been wearing down the White Sox pitchers tonight. Long at-bat after long at-bat.

Frank: Well, I agree with him on that, because in the long run it's going to pay off. It's going to get that starter out of the game and get you into the bullpen, and you get a lot of bullpen guys who are one-inning guys. So their pitch count mounts pretty quick, and you really hurt the bullpen on that side.

--snip--

Ryan: Frank, here we go again -- from 1-and-2 to 3-and-2.

Frank: I think that's what good teams do, Ryan.

Why, yes; that's exactly what good teams do. It's wonderful to discover that someone associated with the Royals seems to have figured this out, all these years later. After last night's dramatic victory, the Royals are sitting in first place in the standings with a 16-11 record. More to the point, they rank eighth in the league in home runs (which is great, for them) and fifth in walks (which is incredible). Oh, and the Beane Count? At this moment,

Billy Beane's Athletics are last in the league, and Dayton Moore's Royals are first.

I never thought I would have occasion to write those words.