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KC Royals: 1985 vs 2015, Who Is The Real Champion?

By Trevor Hooth |
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Oct 15, 2014; Kansas City, MO, USA; The outfield scoreboard displays the Kansas City Royals as American League champions after game four of the 2014 ALCS playoff baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles at Kauffman Stadium. The Royals swept the Orioles to advance to the World Series. Mandatory Credit: Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports

The 1985 KC Royals vs. 2015 KC Royals

The day is October 27, 1985.  A young kid watches a baseball game at Kauffman Stadium and sees the KC Royals win against St. Louis Cardinals. This was not just any ordinary game, this win meant the Kansas City Royals had won their first World Series in franchise history. And the kid? His name is Dayton Moore, current General Manager of the Royals. Oh and one more twist, he was watching from the highway beyond the outfield.

Fast forward to the 2015 World Series, Moore watches the KC Royals beat New York Mets. This time from better seats, and more on the line.

The two championships beg the question that cannot be answered, which team that Moore saw become champions was better? The 30 year difference makes that a tough question to answer. Going position by position to finding statistical advantages helps, but is not a true measurement. That being said, here it goes.

The best way to do this is to give a point to each position that had the better player, then compare the totals.

Next: Offensive Team Leaders And Infield

Looking at the stand out stars on both teams will give each team one point. In 1985 that star was Hall of Famer George Brett at third base. No disrespect to Mike Moustakas, but he is no George Brett. This point goes to 1985.

John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports

The 2015 leader was MVP finalist Lorenzo Cain. His 1985 counterpart was the speedy Willie Wilson, another great player. While this race is closer than Brett and Moustakas, the winner comes out as Cain due to his MVP finalist nod in during the championship season. Point 2015.

Now that the leaders are gone, it is time to cover the rest of the field. The battle at catcher is between Jim Sundberg and Salvador Perez. Looking at the numbers, Perez hit .260 with 21 homers and 70 RBIs, his counterpart Sundberg  hit .245 with 10 homers and 35 RBIs.

Clear advantage to Perez here, right? No Advantage Sundberg, he drew 20 more walks, and struck out 15 less times.  Also, Sandberg’s pitching staff was handled better. A catcher is supposed to work with the pitchers and young Yorando Ventura had one too many suspensions. Point 1985.

The first baseman duel is between Steve Balboni and Eric Hosmer. While Balboni doubled the homerun numbers of Hosmer(36 to 18) the advantage is still clearly in Hosmers favor. Hosmer’s .297 average is well ahead of Baboni’s .243, and Hosmer has the strikeout advantage  108 to 166. But the key here is Hosmer’s presence in the dugout. He was a vocal leader during the year. Point 2015.

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With the score tied, it is time to look at the second baseman. This is a tricky comparison. Frank White vs. Ben Zobrist. Now White has his number retired and seems to have a clear advantage there, but it is not that simple. White hit cleanup for his team, and was a power hitter, where Zobrist hit from the two-hole in the lineup. Both are different players.

It is important to look at the teams, Zobrist hit .290 which fit the small ball persona better than White could with 22 homers. But 1985 had more power in the lineup. Both were key players in their teams system. Based on defensive play White comes out on top. Plus, it is hard to ignore a retired number, point 1985 KC Royals.

Since third was already covered, shortstop is next. This one may not be as close as it seems. Buddy Biancalana and Alcides  Escobar are two players that seem pretty even. Both field well, Escobar is a slightly better fielder, and both have hitting weaknesses.

Escobar is a free swinger, but he posted an average of .257. That is much higher than the .188 of Biancalana. Also, when Escobar gets on base, he is lethal. The small ball persona is back in play, and that means Escobar has the advantage. Point 2015 KC Royals.

Next: Outfield And DH

May 19, 2015; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Royals left fielder Alex Gordon (4), center fielder Lorenzo Cain (6) and right fielder Paulo Orlando (16) celebrate in the outfield after the game against the Cincinnati Reds at Kauffman Stadium. The Royals won 3-0. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

On to the two remaining outfield spots, with the score tied between the two teams.  Left field proves as an advantage for the reigning baseball champions, with Alex Gordon.  Gordon is flat out a better player than Lonnie Smith was. Smith was known for his speed, but with little power to speak off and a less than stellar glove. While Gordon has done his job to become part of KC Royals baseball lore with his bat, and his glove. Point 2015.

In right field, Darryl Motley is up against Alex Rios. Motley did split time with Pat Sheridan but due to the iconic game 7 homer from Motley, he gets the nod as the 1985 right fielder. Rios is not the player he once was, although he put together a .255 batting average out of the nine hole. However, it seems that famous home run by Motley is too much for the aging Rios to overcome.  Point 1985.

It is the American League, so the designated hitter needs to be taken into account when deciding which team is better. In 1985 that was Hal McRae, and in 2015 it was Kendrys Morales. Over a career, McRae was a great hitter, but by 1985 he was in the decline of his career—though he still managed 14 homers and 70 RBIs with a .259/.349/.450 slash line.

Morales has had an up and down career. He was a budding superstar in Anaheim, until he injured his ankle celebrating a walkoff grand slam in 2010. His career never was the same, but still the KC Royals signed him. And Morales delivered a 22 homer, 106 RBI, and Silver Slugger Award winning season. With that, point 2015.

The 2015 Kansas City Royals have a 1 point advantage right now, 5-4, but there are still a few things to consider.  For one, starting pitching.

Next: Starting Pitching And Bullpen

Oct 28, 2015; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Johnny Cueto (47) throws a pitch against the New York Mets in the 9th inning in game two of the 2015 World Series at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Brett Saberhagen(20-6), Charlie Leibrandt(17-9), and Danny Jackson(14-12) were the top pitchers in 1985. Saberhagen and Leibrandt both boasted ERAs under three, and  Jackson put forth a great performance in the World Series that helped his team to victory.  Also, it is worth mentioning Saberhagen was named the 1985 Cy Young Award winner and World Series MVP.

At the helm for the 2015 KC Royals there was, Ventura(13-8), Johnny Cueto(4-7), and Edison Volquez(13-9). Ventura had his share of hot headed moments during the season, with Cuero and Volquez both putting forth decent efforts. However, all of their ERAs hovered around four. Through the season these pitchers seemed inconsistent. Point 1985 KC Royals.

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Next is an essential to any post season, the bullpen. Over a span of 30 years, the roles of a bullpen have changed, so this one is a difficult one to compare.

Off the bat, the point goes to 2015. They had a much stronger bullpen throughout, between Kelvin Herrera, Wade Davis, Luke Hochevar, and Danny Duffy, it is arguably the strongest bullpen in the majors. The 1985 KC Royals had Dan Quisenberry. The rest of the bullpen was just mediocre.

However, it is important to look at the era. In 1985, the closer(Quisenberry), would pitch more than an inning, and the starters pitched more. Because of that a plethora of power arms was not necessary.  But still the point goes to 2015.

Next: Bench And Final Tally

Oct 12, 2015; Houston, TX, USA;Kansas City Royals center fielder Lorenzo Cain #6 gets his injured hand looked at by the trainer on the bench while playing against the Houston Astros in game four of the ALDS at Minute Maid Park. Mandatory Credit: Thomas B. Shea-USA TODAY Sports

The bench also plays a big role for a team during playoffs. On both teams, the bench was essential for running the bases and clutch hitting. The 1985 KC Royals bench had one big moment during game 6 of the World Series, where Dane Lorg produced a two-run single in the ninth inning. A very famous clutch hit.

The 2015 KC Royals bench is known for their speed, led by Jarrod Dyson, but Paulo Orlando and Terrance Gore can be forgotten. Dyson is a lucky guy to have on the bench.  He is fast and talented enough to start everyday. Along with the solid bat of Johnny Gomes, the 2015 bench gets the point here.

Final score, 7-5. On paper the reigning baseball champs are the better team, but baseball is not played on paper. The stats do not show the heart both teams had.  In 1985, at the all-star break, the KC Royals were seven games out of first place before catching fire in the second half of the season. The 1985 Kansas City Royals became the first team to win two series after falling behind three games to one in the same post-season.

In this past season, it seemed like if the Kansas City Royals were within three runs, they always came back. That’s not an illusion. The 2015 KC Royals were the greatest late-inning team in playoff history. The Kansas City Royals pulled off more playoff comebacks (8), and multi-run comebacks (7) than any playoff team. They also scored more runs after the sixth inning than any team in playoff history (51) by a wide margin (Angels 36 runs).

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Both teams pulled off late-inning signature wins. The 1985 team rode an all time great performance from George Brett to beat the Blue Jays 6-5 in Game 3 of the ALDS, which prevented them from going down an almost hopeless three games to none. The 1985 club also saw Dane Iorg’s one-out RBI single that drove in two runs in the bottom of the ninth in Game 6 of the World Series to steal a 2-1 victory that staved off elimination. St. Louis Cardinals fans haven’t stopped crying about that game 30 years later.

Meanwhile, the 2015 KC Royals pulled so many miracle comebacks they’re almost too many to list. They overcame a four-run, eighth inning deficit against Houston to stave off elimination in Game 4 of the American League Division Series (ALDS). The Kansas City Royals stung Toronto ace David Price in a Game 3 rally to overcome a three-run deficit. Then they turned three eighth-inning deficits into victories in their World Series win over the Mets, including Eric Hosmer’s famous mad dash for home that tied up decisive Game 5 in the ninth inning.

Despite the unquestioned grit of the 1985 KC Royals, I think the “never-say-die” 2015 version earns the nod when it comes to intangibles.

Following the 1985 championship, the KC Royals fell to third in the division with a sub-.500 record. With the loss of Johnny Cueto, Ben Zobrist, and (perhaps) Alex Gordon, this off season is critical if Dayton Moore wants to avoid a similar fate and see his third World Series victory.

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