By JOHN MARSHALL

AP Sports Writer

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Kansas City Royals bumbled through August, with poor pitching, weak hitting, even botched popups turning another disappointing season downright ugly.

Then came September.

The pitching got better, the bats produced hits and runs in bunches and the wins started piling up. The monthlong run wasn't enough to make up for the disappointment of the 14th losing season in 15 years. Losing always hurts, even when you've done it as much as the Royals.

What it did do, though, is provide something that's been missing in Kansas City for a long time: hope.

"Certainly, with the way we finished, I think we had more highs than lows," Royals manager Trey Hillman said Tuesday.

The Royals started off great in Hillman's first season, winning six of their first eight games. Then came a seven-game losing streak in April, followed by a 12-game slide in May that snuffed out hope of playoff contention.

That led to another August with nothing to play for, and the Royals acted like it, losing 18 of 21 games, the lowlight coming in a 3-2 loss to Texas on the 27th, when pitcher Brian Bannister flubbed a routine popup to allow the go-ahead run to score, dropping Kansas City to a season-worst 21 games under .500.

Somehow, the Royals bounced back, opening September with a 5-4 win over Oakland, finishing it 18-8, their best month since opening the 2003 season 17-7.

Normally, a last-place team making a run the final month of the season doesn't mean much.

September is when teams out of the playoff hunt pack it in, when rosters are filled with callups getting their first look at the big leagues or career minor leaguers hoping to make an impression. Performing well in September doesn't always mean it's going to happen next season; the numbers are skewed too much.

Still, give the Royals some credit.

While most of its September wins came against Oakland, Cleveland and Seattle, teams that didn't have much left to play for, Kansas City also won two of three at Minnesota the final weekend, forcing the Twins into Tuesday's one-game playoff with the Chicago White Sox.

The Royals (75-87) finished with six more wins than last season, moved out of last place in the AL Central for the first time in five years and cut their deficit in the division to 13 games after being 27 back at the end of 2007.

They can't help but feel like things are going to change.

"We had a couple bad stretches and got ourselves into too big of a hole," right-hander Gil Meche said. "Everybody feels pretty good with the way we're finishing and I think everybody is realizing we're really not that far."

Those bad stretches were tough to take, though.

Kansas City had three losing streaks of at least seven games and lacked power all season, finishing next to last in the AL with 120 homers. Right-hander Brian Bannister seemed to lose some of the steam he generated last year, when he went 12-9 with a 3.87 ERA, losing nine straight decisions before winning two of his final three starts. There also were problems with handling popups, one of the most routine plays in baseball.

Then there was Jose Guillen.

After becoming the highest-paid player in Kansas City history with a three-year, $36 million deal, Guillen gave the Royals what they expected on the field, adding some needed pop to the lineup with 20 homers and 97 RBIs.

Problem was, he also brought some of the distractions he had with past teams, including a shoving match with pitching coach Bob McClure in July 5 and an incident with a fan in August.

Hillman, who had his share of problems with Guillen during the season, said he didn't regret signing Guillen, in part because of the volatile outfielder's passion for winning.

"Some of the challenges with Jose aren't going to go away," Hillman said. "And the reason they aren't going to go away is because he is so passionate. It's like the old analogy: I'd rather have to tame a wild horse than have to put a red-hot poker up his rear end to get him going."

There are still plenty of questions to be addressed in the offseason, as well.

The Royals need to add some punch to a lineup that finished 26th in runs scored and need help at the back end of the rotation. They have a decision to make with first baseman Ryan Shealy, who had seven homers and 20 RBIs as a September callup after struggling with injuries the previous two seasons.

Kansas City needs to look at whether Alberto Callaspo, with his limited range, is the answer at second base, and possibly find a permanent spot for Mark Teahen, who had a solid season despite bouncing around several positions.

Hillman also is looking for improvement from himself after an up-and-down first season in the big leagues, hoping to find a way to stay intense without being tense, as he put it.

"There will probably be times next season when I'm a little more assertive, a little more demonstrative with decisions and things that I say and things that I do, but there's other situations where I may not say as much as I did this year," he said. "I think I'm going to have evaluate those situations now that I have a better feel for our personnel."

After years of struggling -- the last playoff game for Kansas City was the 1985 World Series -- the Royals at least now have a foundation to build upon.

There's Joakim Soria, who quickly developed into one of the majors' best closers, with 42 saves, a 1.60 ERA and an array of pitches he's comfortable throwing in any situation.

Zack Greinke was 13-10 and was sixth in the AL with a 3.47 ERA, tied for fifth with teammate Gil Meche with 183 strikeouts. Starter Kyle Davies found something with his delivery and mental approach over the final month of the season, going 5-1 with a 2.27 ERA his last five starts.

And shortstop Mike Aviles became the biggest surprise of the season, a career minor leaguer turned Rookie of the Year candidate by hitting .325 with 10 homers while giving the Royals exceptional range in the field.

Now, with their strong finish to this season, there is hope for the next -- and beyond.

"Certainly, finishing the 2008 season on a positive note, it gives you a better feel going into spring training next," Hillman said. "It doesn't make up for the bad times and the losing streaks, but it softens the blow of a fourth-place finish."

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