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Kansas City Royals
Baseball History |
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The Kansas City Royals
were purchased as an expansion franchise by pharmaceutical magnate
Ewing Kauffman in 1968 and played their first season the following
year. Early Royals stars included 1969 Rookie of the Year Lou Piniella,
Amos Otis, Paul Splitorff, Cookie Rojas, and Hal McRae. Playing their
very first game in old Municipal Stadium, the Royals rally from a
3-1 deficit to win in extra innings against the eventual Western Division
Champion Minnesota Twins. The club finished with a 69-93 record in
its initial season. The mark was the best of the four expansion teams
debuting in 1969. In 1971, the Royals had their first winning season,
with manager Bob Lemon guiding them to a second-place finish. In 1973,
the Royals moved from Kansas City Municipal Stadium to brand-new Royals
Stadium (now Kauffman Stadium). The stadium, which featured water
fountains beyond the outfield fence and a 10-story high scoreboard
shaped like the Royals crest, topped by a gold crown, also deep outfield
walls and artificial turf, gave future stars such as George Brett
and Frank White their first break as many of Kansas City's veteran
players had difficulty playing on turf. The Royals quickly became
successful, winning three straight division championships from 1976
to 1978 under manager Whitey Herzog. In 1977 the team made a new team
record by winning 102 games. The team won their second consecutive
division title and had to face the Yankees once again in the ALCS.
The 80s saw the Royals make two World series appearances, win their
first Series title, capture three playoff berths and produce and acquire
outstanding baseball talent. Bo Jackson, Saberhagen, Mark Gubicza
and Kevin Seitzer emerged as Kansas City's new wave of stars. That
decade the team as a single unit was one of the most powerful teams.
The team ownership changed hands and in 2000 the Royals were bought
by Wal-Mart executive David Glass for $96 million after the death
of former owner Ewing Kauffman left the franchise without permanent
ownership. One of the best manager’s to work with the team was
Whitey Herzog, leading the Royals to three straight division championships.
While the 1990s presented many struggles on the field, fans got to
see a glimpse of the future with the development of Mike Sweeney and
1999 Rookie of the Year Carlos Beltran. Encouraged by success in 2003,
the Royals plugged some holes with slugger Juan Gonzalez and other
veterans, hoping they would help lift a youngish team to a division
title. Gonzalez was hurt early and it didn't work. The team slid to
a franchise-record 104 losses. The flop prompted the trade of rising
star Carlos Beltran to Houston in late June. On the plus side, pitcher
Zack Greinke and Beltran's replacement, center fielder David DeJesus,
had fine rookie seasons. One highlight: a 26-5 win at Detroit in which
Joe Randa had six hits and scored six runs, the first AL player ever
to do that. The Kansas City Royals are a Major League Baseball team
based in Kansas City, Missouri. They are one of five teams in the
Central Division of the American League. The uniform colors of the
team is royal blue and white and the logo design is entwined "KC"
on a blue shield topped with a gold crown. The home stadium of the
team is Kauffman Stadium. The stadium has a seating capacity of 40,
625 and was built in April 1973.
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