KC Royals: Christian Colon Validates No. 4 Overall Pick

KC Royals utility infielder Christian Colon came off the bench to drive in pinch runner Jarrod Dyson with the lead run in Kansas City’s 7-2 Game 5 win that won the 2015 World Series.

No one will ever again say they wished the Kansas City Royals had drafted someone else besides Christian Colon with the no. 4 overall pick in the 2010 draft.

Think about it Kansas City Royals fans. Would you REALLY risk changing anything that led up to Sunday’s win?

Over the years, KC Royals fans couldn’t help but slaver over some of the names taken after Christian Colon in the 2010 draft. Pre-draft rumors connected the Kansas City Royals to Chris Sale, who is now the unquestioned ace of the Chicago White Sox staff. Other notables taken after Colon include Mets young gun starters Matt Harvey and Noah Syndergaard. Catcher Yasmani Grandal also followed Christian Colon.

Aside from the guys that went after Christian Colon, it’s the ones that went BEFORE that were painful. Superstar Bryce Harper went no. 1 overall. Followed by pitcher Jameson Taillon and shortstop Manny Machado. Harper, Tallion, and Machado were thought to be blue chip “can’t miss” potential superstars.

It felt like the KC Royals weren’t even smart enough to lose well. Pick no. 4 felt like the booby prize.

No matter.

The now 26-year-old Christian Colon has validated his pick with one lousy single—a single that broke open the game that won the 2015 World Series.

Colon entered the game as a pinch hitter for winning pitcher Luke Hochevar in the 12th inning. After falling behind 0-2, Christian Colon laced a line drive over shortstop Wilmer Flores to score Jarrod Dyson from third base to take a 3-2 lead. Pretty good for a guy getting his first post-season at bat in 2015.

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Colon made the most of his opportunity.

After Christian Colon’s single, the New York Mets fell apart. Daniel Murphy booted another ground ball, this time off the bat of reserve outfielder Paulo Orlando, to put runners on first and second. Alcides Escobar doubled to score Colon, and put men at second and third with one out.

The Mets then intentionally walked Ben Zobrist to create a force at every base. Bartolo Colon replaced Addison Reed on the mound for the Mets, only to watch Lorenzo Cain slam a soul-crushing double that cleared the bases. Talk about driving the stake. Cain’s double gave the Royals a five-run bulge, which led to the biggest extra-inning margin in World Series history.

Sunday night was not the first time Colon was involved in a franchise-defining play. Christian Colon scored the winning run in the Kansas City Royals pivotal 9-8 wild card win over the Oakland A’s in 2014. That victory is one that many believe changed the fortunes of the entire franchise.

The fact is, KC Royals fans, the MLB draft is a big crap shoot. No one comes close to taking the best prospect available with every pick. An organization can only hope their evaluation process is good enough to collect enough winning contributors that they enable the big club to win a title.

Christian Colon is the fruit of such a process.

Colon may never become a star, or even a solid starter, at the major league level. At age 26, he’s a guy that has bounced between AAA and Kansas City the last two seasons. In Sunday’s Game 5 of the 2015 World Series, Colon became the guy in the right place at the right time.

And he delivered.

Next: Royals Crowned Greatest Comeback Kings Of World Series History

Christian Colon will forever be remembered in KC Royals lore. Whatever else may come afterward, Christian Colon has achieved baseball immortality.