Lane Thomas Reveals What Changed for the Royals During the All-Star Break

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The Kansas City Royals came out of the All-Star break looking like a team that had left more than just the schedule behind.

Two games into the second half, they’ve outscored the San Diego Padres 13-7, won the series and looked noticeably sharper on both sides of the ball. Lane Thomas has certainly played a role in that with home runs in consecutive games, but he doesn’t think the explanation starts with his swing.

“It’s almost like a fresh start,” Thomas told Royals TV after Saturday’s 6-1 win. “Kind of forget what happened the first half and start fresh.”

That mindset has shown up quickly.

Thomas opened Saturday’s game with another first-inning two-run homer, one day after doing nearly the same thing to begin the second half. Yet when asked about Kansas City‘s recent offensive surge, he immediately shifted the conversation toward the pitching staff.

“I think it’s just being consistent on both sides of the ball,” Thomas said. “Guys are throwing strikes, quick innings, and it helps us get in there and take consistent, good at-bats.”

The Royals spent much of the first half searching for that balance. Saturday looked much closer to what manager Matt Quatraro has been asking for all season.

“The pitching was good. The defense was really good. Obviously the two homers were really helpful,” Quatraro said postgame, via MLB.com. “Being able to execute in all phases is really good.”

Kansas City didn’t dominate every inning. Spot starter Randy Dobnak worked around four walks over 4 1/3 innings, and San Diego repeatedly put runners on base before the Royals escaped with three timely double plays. But the game never felt rushed.

Speaking about Dobnak, Thomas smiled while describing what makes the veteran enjoyable to play behind.

“He works quick, no matter how bad the inning goes or how good,” Thomas said. “As a position player, that’s all you can ask in this heat. Just get us out of there quick so we can get in the box and swing it.”

The fresh legs probably haven’t hurt, either.

Players rarely receive four consecutive days away from regular-season games, and Thomas admitted there is always some uncertainty about timing after that kind of layoff. His approach has been to simplify things rather than ease back into competition.

“Trying to be aggressive at the plate when they’re getting behind in the count,” Thomas said. “It seems like a lot of guys in our lineup are feeling pretty good.”

The results have reflected that confidence.

Thomas has homered in both games since the break. Salvador Perez added his 315th career home run Saturday, moving within two of George Brett’s franchise record, while Jac Caglianone stretched his hitting streak to nine games.

It’s only two games, and nobody inside Kansas City’s clubhouse is pretending the first half has suddenly disappeared. Still, Thomas’ comments offered a glimpse into why the Royals believe this stretch feels different.

‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’

‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source sports.yahoo.com ’