Ninety feet at a time, the patient, proficient Royals chased Mets ace Jacob deGrom from Game 2 of the World Series on Wednesday night at Kauffman Stadium in a 7-1 Mets loss.

The Kansas City Royals have been pretty much what we thought they’d be. They’re tough and smart and patient, smartly constructed, expertly managed.

Beginning Friday night at Citi Field in New York, the Royals and Mets are scheduled to play three straight World Series games without a break. Not a lot, by baseball standards. But a stretch that could have given Kansas City pause.

The Mets’ offense seemed to switch into silent mode right around the moment that Alex Gordon’s game-tying home run cleared the center-field fence in the ninth inning of Game 1 of the World Series, and locking up against a dominant Johnny Cueto was no cure.

These are the same Mets who outscored the Cubs, 21-7, in the NLCS sweep. They haven’t lost their passion or their pulse, as they will try to show when the World Series resumes Friday night at Citi Field in Queens.

Johnny Cueto’s two-hit complete game in Game 2 of the World Series on Wednesday not only helped the Royals gain a 2-0 edge in the best-of-seven series, but it carried a bit of historical context, too.

The Mets are the group that survived a gut-punch from the Padres just before the Trade Deadline, that rallied time and again against the Nationals, that beat Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke and Jake Arrieta in the postseason and that otherwise, in nearly every situation that might have bedeviled them, found a way to survive. To thrive. So now that they are losing the World Series, 2-0, following a 7-1 Game 2 defeat to the Royals, they have little choice but to draw upon their deepest reserves of been-there-done-that chutzpah.

The Mets had been planning for this all through September when they rested and spotted Jacob deGrom and Matt Harvey, intending to have them ready to pitch if they made it to the World Series. For a myriad of reasons, it hasn’t worked out, which became obvious Wednesday night when deGrom barely made it through the fifth inning in a 7-1 Game 2 loss to the Royals at Kauffman Stadium.

Royals first baseman Eric Hosmer’s teammates all seem to agree on one thing: Hosmer, especially with men on base, is locked in.

This was Johnny Cueto as advertised, as needed, as fervently hoped for by the Kansas City Royals. Cueto’s short tenure with the Royals has been mercurial, up and down, erratic, if you like. But Wednesday night in Game 2 of the World Series against the New York Mets, he was the ace the Royals believed they had traded for before the July 31 non-waiver Trade Deadline.

Here are the top GIFs from the Royals’ 7-1 win over the Mets in Game 2 of the World Series, courtesy of @MLBGIFs.

Alcides Escobar has never been much of an offensive force, but all of a sudden this October, he’s been dynamic, setting records and winning the American League Championship Series MVP. How’s he doing it? By swinging at every first pitch fastball he can find.

Alcides Escobar was at it again on Wednesday, using his speed to help the Royals defeat the Mets for a second straight night. Statcast tracked the Royals’ shortstop as he showcased his wheels both in the field and on the bases in Game 2 of the World Series. The player-tracking technology also followed a certain Mets outfielder who turned in one of the best defensive plays of the Fall Classic.

Royals right-hander Edinson Volquez flew back to the Dominican Republic on Wednesday to be with family following the death of his father, a team official confirmed.

Johnny Cueto pitched the Royals to a 7-1 victory and a commanding 2-0 lead over the Mets in the World Series on Wednesday night. Now, as you’d expect, most of the numbers favor Kansas City to take home its first World Series since 1985.

Led by a dominant complete-game performance from right-hander Johnny Cueto and a big fifth inning from their relentless lineup, the Royals took a 2-0 World Series lead over the Mets on Wednesday night by winning Game 2, 7-1, at Kauffman Stadium.

Royals right-hander Johnny Cueto addresses the media after Game 2 of the World Series.