Kansas City Royals - The Seventies (1970-1979)
 
   
 

KC
Home
Click
on Logo		                                                    
      Yr P W L     Yr P W L   Yr P W L               1970  
      1970 4 65 97     1973 2 88 74   1977 1 102 60               Decade  
      1971 2 85 76     1974 5 77 85   1978 1 92 70               Click  
      1972 4 76 78     1975 2 91 71   1979 2 85 77               on Logo  
                  1976 1 90 72                            
                                                       
                                                             
   
  Titles: Top Royals Players of the Seventies  
  1976 - Won Division (Lost to Yankees in ALCS)  
  1977 - Won Division (Lost to Yankees in ALCS) Pitchers:  
  1978 - Won Division (Lost to Yankees in ALCS) Paul Splittorff (18.78) -   73  
    Dennis Leonard (17.04) -   57  
  Ballpark: Dick Drago (11.66) -   38  
  Municipal Stadium (1970-1972) Steve Busby (16.77) -   37  
  Royals Stadium (1973-1979) Al Fitzmorris (15.33) -   33  
  Doug Bird (7.78) -   24  
  Team Name: Larry Gura (7.54) -   18  
  Royals Marty Pattin (7.35) -   16  
  Ted Abernathy (4.17) -   14  
  Owner:  Jim Rooker (1.75) -    11  
  Ewing Kauffman Bruce Dal Canton (4.57) -    11  
    Mark Littell (4.28) -   8  
  General Managers: Bob Johnson (4.49) -   6  
  Cedric Tallis (1970-1974) Steve Mingori (5.36) -   4  
  Joe Burke (1974-1979)    
    Catchers:  
  Managers: Darrell Porter (14.39) -   32  
  Charlie Metro (1970) Ed Kirkpatrick (6.27) -   27  
  Bob Lemon (1970-1972) Fran Healy (4.8) -   12  
  Jack McKeon (1973-1975)    
  Whitey Herzog (1975-1979) First Basemen:  
    John Mayberry (21.35) -   49  
  Hall of Famers: Tony Solaita (3.88) -    5  
  George Brett    
  Orlando Cepeda  Second Basemen:  
  Harmon Killebrew Frank White (10.82) -   26  
    Cookie Rojas (7.17) -   20  
  Rookie of the Year:     
  None ShortStop:  
    Fred Patek (20.51) -   70  
  MVP    
  None Third Base:  
    George Brett (36.17) -   62  
  Cy Young Paul Schaal (9.56) -   17  
  None    
  Outfield:  
  No Hitters: Amos Otis (40.76) -   116  
  Steve Busby (1973) Hal McRae (17.27) -   44  
  Steve Busby (1974) Al Cowens (12.13) -   28  
  Jim Colborn (1977) Willie Wilson (7.6) -   22  
    Tom Poquette (4.33) -   18  
  Lou Piniella (1.14) -   16  
     
  Notable Events: Notable Events:  
       
  1969 - The Royals are named after the old Kansas City Negro League team. 1970 - The Royals establish The Kansas City Royals Baseball Acadamy.    
   They begin play in Municipal Stadium where the old Kansas City A's had A very Branch Rickey-ish concept. The organization is looking to   
   played previously. The Royals become, by far, the most successful find the best of athletes who have been outside of the mainstream   
  expansion team in it's first decade of operation. baseball infrastructure and try to mold them.  
   KC finishes over .500 in their third season.  And by their eighth season, It turns out to be a mixed bag.   
   they were winning Division Titles. Success starts at the top and the Royals The Acadamy produces three major leaguers:   
   management team was best of breed: Owner Ewing Kauffman; GM Cedric □  All star second baseman Frank White  
  Tallis; Farm and Scouting Directors Lew Gorman and Syd Thrift; plus  □  Shortstop UL Washington; 25, a rookie in '77  
  quality assistants such as John Schuerholz and Herk Robinson. □  Shortstop Ron Washington who was traded to the Dodgers  
  The talent this group put together in the early Seventies:   without appearing in a game for KC.   
  □  1968 - Lefthander Paul Splittorff, 21, 25th round pick of amateur draft, That was the plus side.   
    rookie in '70 The minus side is that the time, effort and money could probably  
  □  1968 - Outfielder Al Cowens, 17, 75th round pick of amateur draft,  have been spent more productively elsewhere.   
    rookie in '74 That being said, it was a noble try.   
  □  1969 - 3B Paul Schaal, 26, 27th pick in expansion draft from Angels The experiment is terminated in 1974.   
  □  1969 - Righty Dick Drago, 24, 31st pick in expansion draft from Detroit    
  □  1969 - Righty Al Fitzmorris, 23, 40th pick in expansion draft from Chicago 1973 - The Royals move into Royals Stadium.    
  □  1969 - C Fran Healy, 22, 56th pick in expansion draft from Cleveland It will be renamed Kauffman Stadium in 1993 shortly before   
  □  1969 - OF Lou Piniella, 25, obtained from Seattle Ewing Kauffman's death. The Stadium is Kauffman-worthy.  
    for John Gelnar and Steve Whitaker    
  □  1969 - C Ed Kirkpatrick, 24, obtained from California for Hoyt Wilhelm 1974 - Cedric Tallis is replaced as GM by Joe Burke.   
  □  1969 - C Buck Martinez, 20, obtained from Houston for Johnny Jones (who?)  Unclear what this was all about as Tallis had done one of the best team  
  □  1970 - Outfielder Amos Otis, 23, stolen from the Mets for Joe Foy  building jobs in baseball history and owner Kauffman was a savvy dude.  
  □  1971 - Righty Steve Busby, 21, 2nd round pick in draft,  Tallis signed on with the Yankees the following year, at what you think would  
   rookie in '72  be a heavy spike in pay, maybe everyone knew that was coming.  
  □  1971 - Future HOF Third Baseman George Brett, 18,     
  2nd round pick in draft, rookie in '73 1975 - The Royals dynasty begins as they finish second with 91 wins.   
  □  1971 - Shortstop Fred Patek, 26, six player trade with Pittsburgh  Their ascension is aided by the premature breakup of the their main rival,   
  □  1972 - Righthander Dennis Leonard, 21, 2nd round pick in draft,  the A's dyanasty, as Charlie Finley did not want to spend $ on his team   
   rookie in '74 now that free agency was upon him. Be that as it may, the Royals were  
  □  1972 - 1B John Mayberry, 23, three player trade with Houston   great in their own right. From 1975 thru 1985 (minus the 1981  
  □  1973 - Outfielder Hal McRae, 27, four player trade with Cincinnati strike year), the Royals finished first six times and second four times,  
  □  1973 - Second Baseman Frank White, 22, graduate of Baseball Acadamy topping ninety wins in seven of those seasons.  
  □  1974 - Centerfielder Willie Wilson, 19, first round pick in draft,   
  rookie in '76 1976 - Lefty Larry Gura, 28, is stolen from the Yankees in exchange   
    for journeyman catcher Fran Healy  
  1970 - Kansas City hires on Bob Lemon as manager, He is the first of a   
  string of quality field managers that the Royals employ as their proclivity 1978 - The Royals win their third straight Division title only to lose to the  
   for mangerial excellence extends to the field of play.  Yankees in the ALCS for the third straight year.   
  Jack McKeon is hired on in 1973 and Whitey Herzog comes in in 1975  
  1979 - Whitey Herzog is fired as manager despite three 1st place and   
  two 2nd  place finishes in 5 years.  
   Whitey didn't see eye to eye with the Kauffmans.  
  The firing didn't turn out to be a big deal for either side as the Royals    
  continued to win and Herzog hooked on with the regional rival Cardinals   
  and turned them into a force.  
   
  1979 - Ace Righty Reliever Dan Quisenberry, 26, is a rookie.   
  He was an undrafted amateur free agent in '75