Royals' World Series Game 1 loss eerily similar to Rockies' loss in 2007

The Kansas City Royals were dealt their first postseason setback in Game 1 of the World Series, falling 7-1 to the Madison Bumgarner- and Hunter Pence-led San Francisco Giants at a boisterous Kauffman Stadium.

The lopsided result wasn't what they had in mind, obviously, and it was a bit surprising given the unstoppable roll it appeared they were on coming in. The Royals, who are looking for their first world championship since 1985, set an MLB record by winning their first eight postseason games, including the AL wild-card game. Given the franchise's championship drought and the relative ease with which they were able to dispatch the Los Angeles Angels and Baltimore Orioles, they were obviously the story coming into Game 1 and in many circles were considered the favorites until proven otherwise.

Unfortunately, at least through one game, it was proven otherwise. The Royals' story actually more closely resembled another recent Cinderella story gone wrong in the World Series. That would be the 2007 Colorado Rockies, who like Kansas City streaked to World Series by winning seven straight games in the postseason and 21 of 22 overall dating back to the regular season, but were quickly brought back to earth in a 13-1 loss to the Boston Red Sox in Game 1.

Though it wasn't quite the drubbing Colorado experienced, there were still some eerie similarities, both glaring and subtle, between the two results.

• Long layoff at the worst time: In 2007, the Rockies swept through the Philadelphia Phillies and Arizona Diamondbacks and then sat idly by for the next nine days while the Red Sox and Cleveland Indians went seven games in the ALCS. The Royals were only off for five days, compared to four for San Francisco. It's not a Royals excuse or necessarily even a legit excuse to begin with, but any such layoff is awkward and can prove disruptive in October.

• First-inning woes: Like the Rockies, Kansas City was down 3-0 in the first inning before the national anthem could stop reverberating through the stadium. Hunter Pence capped San Francisco's rally with a two-run homer off James Shields. Dustin Pedroia greeted Jeff Francis with a homer in 2007, and then Boston sent seven more to the plate.

• Short starts:

It was a long night for both bullpens, which is never how you want to start a series. Shields pitched into the fourth on Tuesday, allowing five runs on seven hits. Francis completed four innings for Colorado, allowing six runs on 10 hits. Franklin Morales followed up by allowing seven runs in two-thirds of an inning, so at least Kansas City's Danny Duffy avoided that mess.

• Ran into buzzsaws: Madison Bumgarner is the last pitcher anyone wants to see in the 2014 postseason. He showed why again in Game 1, working seven innings of one-run ball. It was the first run Bumgarner had allowed in 21 2/3 World Series innings. In 2007, the buzzsaw was named Josh Beckett. He too allowed one run in seven innings after entering the start with a 1.17 ERA in three postseason starts.

The 2007 Rockies were ultimately swept and outscored 29-10.  

Scary similarities aside, this is not a Royals team that seems destined for a similar fate. They've come too far and are playing too well to just wilt away. Also, there's very little if any talent discrepancy between them and San Francisco, whereas the 2007 Red Sox were a far deeper team than Colorado.

It's one game. No one should overreact. No one should panic. But Royals' fans should hope for a more competitive Game 2.

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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813