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Kansas City Royals All-Time Team
The Kansas City Royals franchise dates back only
to 1969, so their all-time team can only be fairly compared to other expansion-era franchises. Although they had a particularly strong run from from 1975 to 1985, they've had only two pennants and one World Series championship in over 35 years. And their fortunes don't look to improve any time soon, given the economics of the game and the Royals being a "small market" team. If the owners can agree on a liberal revenue sharing plan then perhaps thing will improve, but until then the losing is likely to continue (they've only had one winning season since 1994).
1st Base:
The lone bright spot for the Royals in recent years has been the consistent hitting of Mike Sweeney (.304, 182 HR, 5 AS). He has managed 20+ HRs six times in seven full seasons in KC, and has become a regular all-star (in part because of the rule each team must have at least one representative). His 2000 campaign was his best: .333 with 29 HR and 144 RBI.
The backup is clearly John Mayberry (.261, 143 HR, 2 AS), but not so much because of awesome numbers as a lack of competition. He logged many more games at 1B than other candidates Wally Joyner (.293), Steve Balboni (.230, 119 HR), and Willie Aikens (.282). And he had respectable power numbers, hitting 20+ HRs in five of his six seasons in KC, and notching 90+ RBIs during four of those seasons. Until the rise of Sweeney I would have given the backup spot to the all-or-nothing power swing of Balboni, but I'm glad to see him lose this roster spot: the notion that Steve Balboni would be on an all-time team I think lowers the value of such an honor.
2nd Base:
Defensive standout Frank White (.255, 912 R, 886 RBI, 160 HR, 178 SB, 5
AS, 8 GG) is one of the best second basemen not in the Hall of Fame. I'm not
endorsing his selection, but he was a star for many years and a key part of
several division-winning Royals teams. A good runner early in his career, he developed some power later on, a rarity at the time for second basemen. He also played nearly three times as
many games at 2B as any other Royal, so he is clearly the starter here.
The backup spot goes to Cookie Rojas (.268,
4 AS), who at this point has played nearly 300 more games at 2B than anyone else. His four all-star selections make him a respectable bench-warmer on this team.
3rd Base:
George Brett (.304, 3154
H, 1583 R, 1595 RBI, 665 D, 137 T, 317 HR, 201 SB, 12 AS, 1 GG) was Mr. Royal during the must successful period in the club's history. Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1999, he batted a phenomenal .390 in 1980 en route to taking the MVP crown and leading them into the World Series for the first time. He also won a batting title earlier in 1976 (.333) and later in 1990 (.329). As if his regular season exploits weren't impressive enough, he also performed well in 9 postseason series: 10 HR in 166 AB with a .337 average. He played mostly 3B, only switching to 1B and DH duties late in his career.
There is no obvious choice for the backup, but I'll go with Joe Randa (.288) based in part on longevity (he served two stints with the club). Never a superstar, his best season was 2000 when he hit .304 with 15 HR and 106 RBI. I also considered Kevin Seitzer (.294, 1 AS), who had a few good seasons, including his first full one in 1987 when he hit .323 with 207 H, 15 HR and 83 RBI. Paul Schaal (.263) also logged some time at the KC hot corner, but his resume is even less impressive.
Shortstop:
Speedy but light-hitting 1970s shortstop Freddie Patek (.241, 336 SBs, 3 AS) is the starter here. He had 8 consecutive seasons of 30+ SB, including highs of 49, 51, and 53. The backup situation is rather weak with U L Washington (.254, 120 SB) nudging out Kurt Stillwell (.256) and newcomer Angel Berroa (.271). (A bit of trivia... that isn't a typo, as "U" and "L" are not initials, his name is just "U L".) Hopefully over the next ten years either Berroa's star will rise or another SS will emerge in KC and claim this roster spot.
Catcher:
Not a strong point for the Royals, you get to
choose between Mike MacFarlane (.256, 103 HR) and John Wathan (.262,
105 SB). They'll each make the roster, and I'll go with MacFarlane as the
starter. He provides a little pop, while Wathan actually provides a little
speed. Brent Mayne (.244) actually caught more games than Wathan, but he wasn't anything special as a hitter. You couldn't go horribly wrong in preferring Darrell Porter (.271, 3 AS) to MacFarlane or Wathan: he didn't play for the Royals for very long, but was a three-time AS for them and in 1979 had a career year: 20 HRs, 10 Triples, 101 Runs, and 112 RBIs.
Outfield:
The starters here are all from the Royal's heyday in the late 70s and early 80s. Amos Otis (.280, 1074 R, 992 RBI, 193 HR, 340 SB, 5 AS, 3 GG) played nearly his entire career in KC, provide good power, speed, and defense. No single season was clearly his best overall, as hit 26 HRs in 1973, swiped 52 bases in 1971, and hit over .290 five times.
Next up will be Willie Wilson (.289, 1060 R, 133 T, 612 SB, 2 AS, 1 GG) the runaway all-time leader in stolen bases for the Royals. He had 20 or more steals in all 13 of his full seasons in KC, before finishing his career with the A's the Cubs. His best totals were 83, 79, and two seasons with 59. He also hit over .300 five times and hit over 10 triples in a season six times.
Rounding out the outfield will be Hal McRae (.293, 873 R, 1012 RBI, 449 D, 169 HR, 3 AS), though he DHed more than he roamed the OF (only 328 games). He had several solid seasons, with his best two being 1977 when he hit .298 with 54 doubles, 21 HR, and 92 RBI, and then 1982 when he .308 with 27 HR and a league leading 133 RBI.
The backups are all more recent outfield stars. Carlos Beltran (.287, 123 HR, 164 SB) won the 1999 Rookie-of-the-Year award after hitting .293 with 22 HR, 108 RBI, and 27 SB. He had three other solid seasons in Kansas City from 2001-2003, all of the 20+ HR, 100+ RBI, 30+ SB variety. But like many young stars, he couldn't be held onto for long.
Another fitting that profile is Johnny Damon (.292, 156 SBs) whose Royals numbers stopped accumulating after his 2000 off-season trade to Oakland. Indeed his recent fame as a leader of the Red Sox and now as a New York Yankee makes it easy to forget his several fine seasons in KC. His best was his last, in 2000, when he hit .327 with 42 doubles, 16 HR, 88 RBI, and 46 SB.
The last spot is a tough choice. Bo Jackson (.250,
109 HR, 81 SB, 1 AS) was a superb multi-sport athlete who suffered a hip injury playing football for the Oakland Raiders in a 1991 playoff game. He only played briefly for the Royals, but he got a lot out of that time, smashing 20+ HR in each his four full seasons. He hit for a low average and struck out a lot, but he showed speed on the bases with highs of 27 and 26 steals in 1988 and 1989.
Slugger Danny Tartabull (.290, 124 HR, 1 AS) excelled as a hitter for a few seasons in KC, managing 25+ HR and 100+ RBI three times. Jermaine Dye (.284, 1 AS, 1 GG) played a bit less for the Royals, but had two great seasons hitting .294 with 27 HR and 119 RBI in 1999 and then .321 with 33 HR and 118 RBI in 2000. Lou Piniella (.286) won the Rookie-of-the-year award in 1969 and had had five fine seasons for the Royals, but provided neither much power or speed. Al Cowens (.282, 1 GG) also had several fine seasons, and had one superb one when he hit .312 with 23 HR and 112 RBI in 1977 (he was AL MVP runner-up that year, losing out to Rod Carew). Digging deeper you could even consider Brian McRae (.262) or Jim Eisenreich (.277). But I think I'll go with Bo for his combination of power and speed and the excitement his ability brought to the fans. If you prefer someone else, especially Tartabull or Cowens, you wouldn't get much argument from me.
Starting Pitching:
As it turns out, the first six starting pitcher spots are pretty
easy. The chosen pitchers are not exactly star names, but they do stand out
from any others in Royals history. Included here are: Dennis Leonard (144-106,
3.70), Paul Splittorff (166-143, 3.81), and Larry Gura (111-78,
3,72, 1 AS) from the late 70s and early 80s, Mark Gubicza (132-135,
3.91, 2 AS) and Bret Saberhagen (110-78, 3.22, 2 AS, 1 GG) from the late
80s and early 90s, and then Kevin Appier (115-92, 3.49, 1 AS) from the
entire 90s decade.
If I had to choose an ace for this staff, I'd have to go
with Dennis Leonard, who was a lifetime Royal and had three 20-win seasons. Bret Saberhagen would be the other candidate as he had stronger top performances, capturing the AL Cy Young award in both 1985 (20-6, 2.87) and again in 1989 (23-6, 2.16). Like Leonard, Splittorff was a lifetime Royal and managed fine seasons in 1973 (20-11, 3.98) and again in 1978 (19-13, 3.40). Gura had two 18-win seasons, Gubicza went 20-8 with a 2.70 ERA in 1988, and Kevin Appier was a high-strikeout pitcher whose best year was 1993 when he went 18-8 with a 2.56 ERA.
After these six, the pickings get very thin. I will give a seventh and
final spot to Steve Busby (70-54, 3.71, 2 AS), who had three solid seasons for
KC and several other partial seasons. He went 22-14 in 1974 and 18-12 in 1975,
and was selected to the all-star team both years.
I did consider a few other candidates. Charlie Leibrandt (76-61, 3.60) was in Royals rotation for six seasons, with 1985 being his best (17-9, 2.69). Dick Drago (61-70, 3.52) was one of the earliest Royals starters, playing for them from 1969-1973, and going 17-11 with a 2.98 ERA in 1971. And Tom "Flash" Gordon split his time as a starter and reliever during seven full seasons in KC.
Relief Pitching:
I require between 2-4 relief pitchers be chosen
for each all-time team. In this case, only two are truly deserving - but they
are excellent choices. Submariner Dan Quisenberry (2.55, 238 SV,
3 AS) was one of the elite relievers of the 1980s. He was likely the best
reliever in all of baseball from 1980-1985, winning the Rolaids Relief award
five times. (On a personal note, he was my favorite pitcher as a kid, and I through sidearm, and occassionally submarine, from little-league through High-School Varsity.)
Jeff Montgomery (3.20, 304 SV, 3 AS) had less impressive individual seasons, but was good for more seasons than Quiz was. He had 30+ saves five times, leading the league with 45 in 1993. They are both very deserving of spots on this roster.
Finding a third reliever is not as easy, but Ted Abernathy (2.30, 40 SV) seems like a good choice. He only pitched from 1970-72 for the Royals, the last three years of his career. At age 38 in 1971 he had 23 saves and a 2.56 ERA. Other candidates include Doug Bird (3.56, 59 SV) who had 10-20 saves four times for the Royals, and Steve Farr (3.05, 49 SV) who pitched for the Royals for six seasons, including 1988 when he notched 20 saves with a 2.50 ERA.
Extra Spot:
Because he made the all-star team three times
and had such an impressive 1979 campaign, Darrell Porter will be the extra man
on the club. It is always good to have extra catchers anyway. Honorable mention goes to Danny Tartabull and Al Cowens.
Team Captain:
Few teams have a more clear cut team Captain
than the Royals. George Brett played his entire Hall of
Fame career with KC. He is the all-time leader for the Royals in every major offensive
category except stolen bases (not known for his base running, he is still
fourth on the team).
Starting Lineup
Willie Wilson OF
Amos Otis OF
George Brett 3B
Hal McRae OF
Mike Sweeney 1B
Mike MacFarlane C
Frank White 2B
Freddie Patek SS
Dennis Leonard SP
One could reasonably configure this mythical lineup any number of ways; this is just one possibility. There is plenty of speed present, but no pure homerun hitter. And if you conceived of it with a DH, then McRae would play that role and Beltran would join the lineup and hit in the second or sixth spots.
Prospects for Current Players:
Ouch... not good. Sweeney is already on this roster, and I mentioned Berroa earlier. I suppose if Mike MacDougal has another few adequate seasons as closer he could take Abernathy's spot. But without wanting to beat a dead horse, I don't see this all-time roster changing much unless the market situation for the Royals changes due to robust revenue sharing finally taking place. We'll see...
Other Lists
Royals Retired Numbers
George Brett (5), Dick Howser (10, manager), and Frank White (20)
Royals Hall of Fame (players listed only, with year of induction)
Steve Busby (1986), Amos Otis (1986), Cookie Rojas (1987), Paul Splittorff (1987), Dennis Leonard (1989), Hal McRae (1989), Larry Gura (1992), Freddie Patek (1992), George Brett (1994), Frank White (1995), John Mayberry (1996), Dan Quisenberry (1998), Willie Wilson (2000), Jeff Montgomery (2003), Bret Saberhagen (2005), Mark Gubicza (2006)
2003 Rob Neyer's Big
Book of Baseball Lineups
Neyer's choices don't differ much from mine. Given it was through 2002 only, choosing Mayberry over Sweeney is reasonable. Neyer prefers Porter's quality seasons as the starter at catcher. Tartabull is listed as the starting RF, noting that "man, could he ever hit a baseball, and was rare Royal with plate discipline." Hal McRae is in the starting lineup as the DH. The starting four are listed in this order: Saberhagen, Appier, Leonard, Splittorff.
His backup hitters are all the same as mine (with MacFarlane and Sweeney on the bench since they aren't his starters), with the exception of Kevin Seitzer, who was a reasonable choice through 2002. Jermaine Dye gets the sixth OF spot (again, because McRae is starting as DH). His next four hurlers are Mark Gubicza, David Cone (27-19, 3.29, 1 AS), Steve Busby (good), and Jose Rosado (37-45, 4.27, 2 AS). In Cone's favor is the Cy Young award he won during the strike-shortened season of 1994, when he went 16-5 with a 2.94 ERA. But he only pitched one other full season for the Royals, so I don't consider that enough. His note on Rosado reads: "Unimposing 37-45, but got poor support from his mates and pitched in two All-Star Games; not blessed with great stuff, but fearlessly threw inside heat to righties." I'll grant the lack of support (leading him to have records of 9-12, 8-11, and 10-14 in his three full seasons). But how can you choose Rosado here and totally omit Larry Gura? Or even Leibrandt (and perhaps others) should be given this spot instead of Rosado.
1985 The
All-Time All-Star Baseball Book by Bart Acocella,
Nick Acocella, and Donald Dewey
A very reasonable team given the date it was authored. In 1985 Mayberry was the obvious choice at 1B. And all the other choices are the same as mine except Porter is chosen at C over Wathan.
1995 Baseball
Ratings by Charles S. Faber
The Faber system as applied in 1995 creates a
reasonable all-time team. In fact, it is the same lineup as Acocella, et al. Faber only differs in Splittorff being listed as the top starter over Leonard.
TheBaseballPage.com (link)
This website (as of May 2006) selects mostly the same players as I have. Stillwell is the backup SS, and Seitzer the backup 3B. Since McRae is listed as a DH, Tartabull makes the team as a backup for Bo Jackson in RF. Porter is again chosen as the starting catcher, with MacFarlane the backup. The five-man rotation is Leonard, Saberhagen, Gura, Appier, Splittorff, which means Gubicza is left off the team. That is a bit odd to me, given that in addition to Quisenberry and Montgomery, they go on to include Tom Gordon, Danny Jackson (37-49, 3.69), and Steve Mingori (3.05, 27 SV) in the bullpen. Jackson pitched three full seasons for the Royals, but never managed more than 14 wins. Mingori was a fine middle reliever during the mid- and late-1970s, who regularly had an ERA below 3.00. I think Gubicza should get a spot on the team over any of these three. (They apparently have only 5 listed as SP on each all-time team, but then I'd argue for Gubicza over Jackson to come out of the pen).
The Examiner (link)
A story in The Examiner's Sports Monthly (Eastern Jackson County, Missouri), the webpage for which states it was last updated in July 2004, provides a Royal's All-Time Team. Mayberry is chosen over Sweeney at 1B, then the rest of the infield is the same as mine. Darrell Porter is the catcher, and again with McRae listed at DH, Beltran cracks the OF. Quiz is of course the reliever, and the four man staff is Leonard, Saberhagen, Splittorff, and Steve Busby. Why Busby I asked? The caption notes "Two no-hitters with Royals in 8 seasons." I didn't know that.
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