Ben Reiter on Overtime: What is the Kansas City Royals Secret?

Sports Illustrated’s Ben Reiter joins Jeff Thurn on Tuesday’s edition of Overtime.

Reiter discusses baseball, as the the sport hits its stretch run with September approaching and pennant races heating up.

Why do the Kansas City Royals keep winning?

"Well you know the story roots back to the trade deadline. A whole lot of anguish in Royals nation when didn't make the big move, despite talks for David Price and others. I think it is proving to be the right one. I think that Dayton Moore knew his team is better than it has played. Let's break it down: they have one of the best pitching staffs in baseball, that bullpen is virtually unhittable in innings seven, eight, and nine. They have got the best defense in baseball according to all these saber metrics. The real problem was the offense. Nobody was really hitting up to their ability. The Royals front office believed this collection of young talented hitters would eventually come around. And that's really been their secret recently. They have started finally hitting, talking about Billy Butler, Alex Gordon, and guys like that. Here they are a legitimate contender and it's obviously been a long road for them."

*Thurn is on ESPN 99.1 everyday from 3 to 6 p.m. Follow him on Twitter @jtespn991, and Sam @samtastad.