The Oakland Athletics wrapped up a ten-game road trip on Sunday with a 1-9 record that has left them eight games out of first place in the AL West. The A's have been fortunate in the fact that the rest of the division hasn't exactly ramped up their play with the division leading Texas Rangers only 5-5 over their last ten games. That doesn't really help the A's improve their hitting or avoid injuries, but it has bought them a little bit of time to figure out some kinds of solutions to their problems.
While the A's are playing the Royals this week, the Rangers find themselves traveling to the Bronx to face the New York Yankees. The Los Angeles Angels and Seattle Mariners have a mini two-game series with each other Tuesday and Wednesday. Given all these matchups, if the A's can get some offense together against the Royals, it's entirely possible they could pick up a couple games in the standings before they host the San Francisco Giants this weekend.