Mariners have arguably been Royals’ toughest opponent in recent years
Updated Sep 22, 2015 at 12:25p ET
Although the Kansas City Royals took two of three games from the Seattle Mariners when these teams met in June, the Mariners have arguably been Kansas City's toughest opponent in recent years.
Best Record vs. Royals Since 2012
| Team | Record | Win percentage |
| Mariners | 16-9 | .640 |
| Blue Jays | 17-11 | .607 |
| Cardinals | 12-8 | .600 |
| Yankees | 16-11 | .593 |
| Tigers | 44-31 | .587 |
With his three-home run outburst on Sunday, Kendrys Morales is now up to 105 RBI in 2015. Only one player has ever delivered more in his first year with the Royals.
Most RBI in First Season with Royals
| Player | Year | RBI |
| Jeff King | 1997 | 112 |
| Kendrys Morales | 2015 | 105 |
| Danny Tartabull | 1987 | 101 |
| John Mayberry | 1972 | 100 |
| Willie Aikens | 1980 | 98 |
Ben Zobrist's time atop Kansas City's lineup has been limited, but he's helped the Royals score at least eight runs in four of his seven starts in the leadoff spot.
Royals' Team Offense by Starting Leadoff Hitter
| Runs Per Game | Batting Average | |
| Ben Zobrist | 7.00 (49/7) | .327 (85/260) |
| All Others | 4.39 (624/142) | .268 (1,303/4,862) |
Zobrist is batting .308 (56/182) since joining the Royals. The only midseason acquisition to ever produce a higher mark for Kansas City was Pat Tabler (.309) in 1988 (minimum 100 PA for Royals and one game for previous team in season).
Of course, just getting three runs has usually been enough to secure a victory for the Royals. Only a couple American League teams over the past 35 years, including the great Mariners squad from 2001, have fared better when tallying at least three times.
Best Record when Scoring 3+ Runs, American League since 1980
| Year | Team | Record | Win Percentage |
| 1990 | Oakland Athletics | 99-20 | .832 |
| 2001 | Seattle Mariners | 108-28 | .794 |
| 2015 | Kansas City Royals | 88-22 | .788 |
| 1998 | New York Yankees | 108-30 | .783 |
| 2014 | Seattle Mariners | 79-22 | .782 |
The Royals have excelled at scoring their runners from second base on singles.
Most Times Scoring from Second on Singles
| Team | Runs |
| Royals | 109 |
| Blue Jays | 105 |
| Braves | 104 |
| Pirates | 103 |
| Giants | 102 |
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