KC Royals: Five Most Influential Players In Franchise History

1.) GEORGE BRETT

Really, who else could be no. 1 on this list?

There’s a good reason why Brett’s statue stands in front of Kauffman Stadium. George Brett is the model for Kansas City Royals baseball, like Babe Ruth is for the New Yankees, and Stan Musial is for the Saint Louis Cardinals.

Perhaps Alex Gordon, or Eric Hosmer (if he returns to Kansas City after hitting free-agency in 2018) can claim a spot next to Brett in the KC Royals pantheon, but they’ll never be able to displace him. George Brett was the first home-grown Kansas City Royal to earn induction into the Hall-of-Fame. Anyone else to earn the honor will follow the trail he blazed.

George Brett was a 21-year-old rookie when he got a September call-up in 1973. Yes, Hal McRae was beginning to teach the KC Royals to play Big Red Machine baseball. But, George Brett was the sponge.

Not only did he learn winning baseball from Hal McRae, Brett became hitting coach Charlie Lau‘s prize pupil. After a rough rookie season in 1974, Brett gave himself over to Charlie Lau’s hitting philosophy and became a baseball superstar.

Brett became the model for an entire style of hitting that spread across baseball in the 70’s. Even today, many hitting coaches use elements of the Charlie Lau hitting school to instruct players.

Hal McRae and Charlie Lau might have been the mentors, but George Brett became the engine that drove the Kansas City Royals to win six American League West titles, two AL pennants, and one World Series from 1976-85. He defined the Golden Era of Kansas City baseball, and was the leader of what was then considered the model franchise for expansion teams to follow.

Brett seized the spotlight at age 23 by winning his first of three batting titles in 1976, then following it with a clutch three-run home run in deciding Game 5 of that season’s ALCS. Brett’s eighth-inning home run terrified a star-studded Yankee team by knotting the score at 6-6, before Chris Chambliss blasted a walk-off dinger to win the AL pennant.

Brett followed that debut on the national stage with more clutch playoff heroics than any player of his generation. George Brett was an October menace, hitting .337/.397/.627 in nine playoff series in his career. Remember, this was in an era before wild cards or divisional series. Back then, the two division winners in each league met in a championship series (that was only best five games) to earn a trip to the World Series.

In George Brett’s day, nine playoff series was a lot.

George Brett’s career is really a book-length story. I’m just hitting a few highlights. You can read more about his five greatest moments in a KC Royals uniform here. There’s also an ocean more material available on the web.

But, in the end, it’s that statue in front of Kauffman Stadium that shows what George Brett meant to the Kansas City Royals franchise.

Next: Conclusion