There’s something about Las Vegas that encourages stupidity. During my first trip in college, I decided to stay at the Howard Johnson. Dumb. Last weekend, I did something far less intelligent. I bet on the Royals to win — twice. Dumber. Not only did they look absolutely wretched in the two games against the Angels, I lost $20 on the deal. In this season-long root canal without Novocain, the least the Royals could do is help me win a Luxor parlay. But it turns out that my weekend losses in Vegas were just the latest chapter in the sorriest baseball season that I’ve ever been subjected to.Just AwfulReally, we should have known from the start. On opening day, reported ace Brian Anderson allowed five earned runs in five innings. His performance, however, was overshadowed when Mendy Lopez — whom I think I saw cleaning out bathrooms last weekend at the Imperial Palace — belted the game-tying home run in the ninth, and the Royals downed the White Sox 9-7. “I got to be honest,” Lopez said after the game. “I never think about hitting a ball that far.” In the next few weeks, that became abundantly clear. Lopez was hitting .105 before his July release. Before long, Carlos Beltran was gone in a one-sided trade with Houston, the top two catchers were on the disabled list, and Ken Harvey was being drilled in the back with cutoff throws. As for Anderson, the opening day performance was — in retrospect — his shining moment of the season. By July 1, Anderson had an ERA over seven, and was banished to the bullpen.No HopeLast season, you couldn’t turn on the television without hearing one of those “We Believe” commercials. The Royals weren’t just winning games, they were doing so in ridiculous fashion, with home runs in the ninth, and saves from the unpredictable Mike MacDougal. This year, there’s no reason to believe, no reason to hope for the future. All Royals fans can believe in this season is more miserable baseball. Incoming KU freshmen have lived their entire lives without ever seeing the Royals play a postseason game. There’s no reason to think they’ll see one before they retire. The Royals’ youth movement is a bigger scam than the Atkins Diet. The young nucleus of last season? Gone. MacDougal is still trying to find the strike zone at AA Wichita. Today, reigning Rookie of the Year Angel Berroa — with the ink still wet on a four year, $11 million contract — joined him on the Wranglers. Of the young players still in the big leagues, they can’t hit (John Buck), throw (Jimmy Serrano), or I’ve never heard of them (Ruben Gotay?). At the end of the season, Baird’s four year run should mercifully end. Mike Sweeney should be traded for loose parts. Once again, the Royals should start over. We believe? For the first time in years, the Royals looked like they were playing with a full deck. Instead, the best they could do was fold.