Kansas City Royals Franchise Four Candidates

courtesy of BostonGlobe.com

Hal McRae

Hal McRae began his career with the Cincinnati Reds, but it was not until he was traded to the Kansas City Royals along with Wayne Simpson that his career truly took off. A full time player for the first time at age 27, McRae remained with the Royals as an outfielder and designated hitter for the next 15 years before eventually becoming a coach and manager, even managing his son Brian McRae with the Royals.

While McRae may best be remembered for his telephone throwing rant as a manager, he was a solid player for the Royals, posting a .293/.356/.458 batting line with 169 home runs, 449 doubles and 105 stolen bases in Kansas City. A three time All-Star in Kansas City, McRae also won a Silver Slugger award and twice finished fourth in the MVP vote, reaching that point in 1976 and 1982.

Hal McRae certainly has a strong presence on the all time Kansas City Royals lists. He ranks fifth in hits and runs, fourth in home runs, second in RBI and third in walks. McRae’s .814 OPS is still good enough to rank ninth in Royals history, and those 105 stolen bases leaves him tied for twelfth.

Looking back at his career, McRae may be a lot better than people realized. Of course, he also has that epic meltdown to fall back upon as a way to garner a few extra votes.

Next: A true steal of a deal