Kansas City Royals Top Five Third Basemen

credit: totalprosports.com

5. Gary Gaetti (1993-1995, 7.8 WAR)

We all know that Steve Balboni holds the Kansas City Royals single season home run record with 36, but how many people knew that Gary ‘The Rat’ Gaetti is second on that list with 35 home runs? Well, you do now.

Signed midway through the 1993 season after being released by the Angels, Gaetti put together two solid seasons for the Royals before truly exploding in 1995. That season, Gaetti produced a .261/.329/.518 batting line, hitting the aforementioned 35 home runs to go along with 96 RBI and 27 doubles. Those efforts earned Gaetti tenth place on the MVP ballot that year and his only Silver Slugger award.

Overall, for his career with the Kansas City Royals, Gary Gaetti produced a .267/.323/.491 batting line, hitting 61 home runs and 60 doubles. Defensively, although he was never a Gold Glove winning third baseman, Gaetti saved the Royals 32 runs in his time in Kansas City, leading the league with twelve defensive runs saved in 1994.

Gaetti may be best remembered for his time with the Minnesota Twins, bu he actually had his best overall run with any team as a member of the Kansas City Royals. While that stellar 1995 season skewed his overall numbers, Gaetti was still an excellent third baseman.

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