Truth be told, most rival general managers didn’t take the Kansas City Royals all that seriously entering the 2004 season. Oh, they praised GM Allard Baird’s off-season work, marveling at his ability to stretch a $47.6 million payroll. But when the subject turned to the Royals’ starting pitching, the consensus was “not good enough.”

The early weeks of the season did nothing to dispel that assessment, and the Royals exacerbated the problem by playing poor defense, hitting below expectations and blowing games with their bullpen. Other than that — and the deficit that resulted from such ineptitude — they’ve been just fine.

Keep in mind, though, the Royals play in the American League Central, a collection of mediocrity that enabled them to go 2-7 on a recent trip and lose only one game in the standings. Also keep in mind that Baird has one more chip to play before staging an eBay-style auction for all-world center fielder Carlos Beltran.

That chip is phenom Zack Greinke, who is pitching at Class AAA Omaha.

The Royals have decided to promote Greinke, 20, who was The Sporting News Minor League Player of the Year last season. Greinke would give the team a desperately needed righthanded starter — 31 of the Royals’ first 34 games were started by lefties, the majority of whom are soft tossers — and allow Dennys Reyes to return to the bullpen.

Baird emphasizes that he does not view Greinke as a savior. Heck, the Royals’ rotation has been so awful — entering the week, its 5.98 ERA was ahead of only the Devil Rays’ and the Orioles’ in the AL — that even if Greinke succeeded, he might not make much of a difference.

Was this team overrated? It sure looks that way. The Royals were something of an illusion last season, taking a seven-game lead at the All-Star break while the Twins slept, hitting a major league-best .304 with runners in scoring position and finishing 83-79 despite getting outscored by 31 runs. The profile all but screams, “Lucky!”

This season, Kansas City’s early schedule was difficult: The Royals are 3-16 against the Yankees, Red Sox, A’s and two AL Central rivals they must beat, the Twins and White Sox. Their offense has been surprisingly impotent, ranking only 12th in the AL in runs, eight places below where it finished last season. Beltran, Mike Sweeney and Co. are better than that. It would help if Juan Gonzalez showed up. Angel Berroa, too.

Yet, even if the Royals hit, their pitching and defense might doom them.

Their bullpen, following the demotion of former closer Mike MacDougal and an injury to Curtis Leskanic, now features a collection of unheralded pitchers. The defense also is a significant concern, especially when the pitching staff is last in the majors in strikeouts.

The Royals are next-to-last in defensive efficiency, a statistic that measures the percentage of balls in play that are converted into outs.

Which brings us back to Greinke. Ideally, the Royals want to promote him when they’re on a roll, easing his burden. But such timing might not be possible, and Greinke will face added scrutiny regardless. “No matter when you bring him up, there’s going to be a heightened awareness,” Baird says.

Baird owes it to his players and fans to take his best shot — especially when Beltran, in his final season before departing as a free agent, is blossoming into the game’s top all-around player.

Anything is possible in the Central.