The Kansas City Royals are World Series Champions, so you could assume that the Royals would be getting the most press coverage this offseason of any MLB team, right?

Well, this is far from the truth. Take for example the cover of “Sports Illustrated” for the MLB season preview. The four teams for the regional covers are the New York Mets, the Houston Astros, the San Francisco Giants and the Chicago Cubs. For “ESPN The Magazine” Washington Nationals Outfield Bryce Harper is on the cover. Absent from the main national media coverage is the Royals.

As a lifelong Royals fan, it is upsetting to see the Royals not getting the coverage that they deserve. I started to think, why don’t the Royals get more coverage? Then it dawned on me. The Royals are in one of the smallest media markets for MLB teams. All four teams that appeared on the cover of “Sports Illustrated” are in the top 10 of biggest media markets in the United States. Washington, D.C., which was represented by Harper on the cover of “ESPN The Magazine” is also in the top 10. Kansas City on the other hand, is 33rd in the nation for size of media markets (not just including MLB cities). It seems only logical that the major media would favor teams like the Giants and Mets. Yes, the Royals won the World Series, but there are less Royals fans across the country than those other teams.

Another aspect that plays into this is that the Royals lack a real superstar. You won’t find a Mike Trout or a David Price on the Royals, but instead a group of talented players. Sure we have all-stars in catcher Salvador Perez and centerfield Lorenzo Cain amongst others, but the true big names aren’t there. To people from Kansas City these players are all very recognizable, but to people around the country they aren’t that familiar.

Now you might still be thinking that the Royals deserve more coverage despite being from a smaller market. However, I believe that it is not a bad thing that the Royals are getting less coverage. The Royals have thrived the past two years off of being the underdog. In 2014, the Royals were American League Champions, but they weren’t even expected to win the AL Central. Then, as we know, in 2015 the Royals took the ultimate prize in the World Series. This year, not getting national media coverage should serve as motivation for the team.