Game 50: Royals 6, Indians 3

One week ago, the Indians were gunning for a sweep of Detroit. Now, they have to win two out of three over the weekend to split their Kansas City/Minnesota homestand.

One week ago, Travis Hafner was going to be held out of the next game due to precautionary reasons. Now, he's going to be out 4-6 weeks recovering from arthroscopic knee surgery.

One week ago, the starting rotation was rounding into form - even Ubaldo Jimenez and Justin Masterson. Now, the rotation looks exposed, with no starter having finished six innings in the past week.

One week ago, with Choo at the top of the lineup, the offense seemed on the poise of breaking out. Now, even though scoring hasn't been a problem yet, the effects of having the middle third of the order out are beginning to be felt.

One week ago, the Indians were in first place, 4 games in front of the White Sox. A 1-5 week later, the Indians are in second place, having lost 5.5 games in the standings to Chicago.

A lot can change in one week: perceptions, records, health, and the standings. The only good thing about this week's results is that we now know firsthand how quickly things can change, so the possibility exists that next week the rotation will have gotten its act back together again, Carlos Santana will be in the lineup, the White Sox won't be impersonating the 1927 Yankees, and the Indians will be playing the baseball again.

Source: FanGraphs