Updated: July 1, 2009, 11:46 AM ET

Ultimate Standings 2009: No. 42

Kansas City Royals

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By Molly Knight
ESPN The Magazine
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Last Year's Rank: 51
Title Track: 65
Ownership: 73
Coaching: 70
Players: 53
Fan Relations: 50
Affordability: 2
Stadium Experience: 5
Bang for the Buck: 60

Despite being in the midst of a 23-season playoff drought and being a team that's fighting to get over .500, the Royals are one of the six clubs in MLB that are up in attendance (by 3,091 per contest) this season. How is this possible? It turns out the KC faithful just need something to believe in, and they've found it in AL Cy Young candidate Zack Greinke. On May 4, when Greinke took the mound at Kauffman Stadium against the White Sox, 6,515 fans purchased walk-up tickets to watch the 25-year-old righty strike out 10 on his way to a complete game shutout. The Royals make that kind of surrender to serendipity easy on the wallet. The average ticket costs just $19.38, third cheapest in the AL. That number doesn't even include the $7 tickets the club offers to students on Wednesdays, the free tickets given to servicemen and -women on Military Mondays and scattered Buck Nights where hot dogs, small sodas, peanuts and programs cost $1. The newly renovated K has drawn rave reviews from fans, thanks to a larger scoreboard, double the ticket windows and an onslaught of kids' entertainment, including a playground, carousel, batting cages and an MLB2K9 game lounge. Throw in a gem from Zack every fifth day, and it hardly feels like a drought.