Kansas City Royals Five Best Draft Picks in Team History

Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

1. George Brett – 2nd round, 1972

What can be said about George Brett that has not been said already? He is the only member of the Kansas City Royals in the Baseball Hall of Fame, had over 3000 hits, made a run at the legendary .400 batting average while winning a batting title in three different decades, made 13 All-Star Games and won a Gold Glove and an MVP award. And let us not forget his epic confrontations with the New York Yankees.

The numbers that Brett posted were truly astonishing. In his career, Brett had a .305/.369/.487 batting line with 3154 hits, 317 home runs and 201 stolen bases. Brett’s 665 doubles rank sixth all time in baseball history. With those numbers in mind, it may not be a surprise that the Royals third baseman entered the Hall of Fame with 98.2% of the vote, the fifth highest total in baseball history.

Forty three years after being drafted, Brett is still in the organization. After retiring, Brett served as the Vice-President of the Royals, and stepped down from the front office for two months to serve as the team’s interim hitting coach. He certainly had the touch for the role, getting through to players like Eric Hosmer, who had been struggling at the time.

Even though it has been 22 years since his last game, George Brett is still the face of the Kansas City Royals. As arguably the greatest third baseman in baseball history, and one of the best players even in the majors, he is easily the best draft pick in the history of the Kansas City Royals.

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