Royals' Path To World Series Follows 2010 Giants Blueprint, MLB Writer Claims

Can the Royals emulate the success of the former World Champs?

Nov 1, 2010; Arlington, TX, USA; San Francisco Giants relief pitcher Brian Wilson (38) celebrates with first baseman Aubrey Huff (left) and catcher Buster Posey (top) after defeating the Texas Rangers 3-1 in game five of the 2010 World Series at Rangers Ballpark. The Giants won the series four games to one. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-Imagn Images / Tim Heitman-Imagn Images

The 2010s San Francisco Giants are typically a sore subject for Kansas City Royals fans.

In 2014, the Royals lost in seven games to the Madison Bumgarner-led Giants in the World Series. Kansas City came back the next year and won it all, but they came within a razor's edge of back-to-back titles.

But although the Royals may hate that era of Giants baseball, they could also be looking to emulate it during the 2025 season.

On Tuesday, Tim Britton of The Athletic previewed the Major League Baseball season by comparing each team to a historically successful counterpart based on projected preseason win total, effectively showing how any team could defeat the odds to make a deep playoff run.

And which team was Britton's historical comparison for the Royals? Not the 2014 Giants, but the 2010 San Francisco team that won the first of three World Series titles in a five-year span.

"The 2009 Giants had made the big leap, from 72 wins to 88. Naturally, projection systems were skeptical it was all replicable. After all, could a rotation fronted by Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain do that again?"

"Now the challenge is backing it up a year later. Lincecum and Cain weren’t as good individually in 2010 as they had been in ’09, but they were joined by Jonathan Sánchez and Madison Bumgarner. Seth Lugo may not be the Cy Young runner-up in 2025, but Cole Ragans can still be better, and the bullpen provides more depth to the staff as a whole."

Not only are Cain and Lincecum comparable to Lugo and Ragans, but there's an obvious position player parallel as well: the Royals' Bobby Witt Jr. and 2010 National League Rookie of the Year Buster Posey.

The Royals are going to have to win with pitching first this season, but the offense could be more than adequate if Witt continues his superstar ways and is supplemented by timely contributions from role players--think Cody Ross and Juan Uribe back in the day.

If it all comes together, Kansas City could find themselves dogpiling on the mound, just as the Giants did in Arlington, Tex. that October.

More MLB: Royals' Bobby Witt Jr. Predicted For Major First-Time Accomplishment In 2025