Kansas City Royals Countdown: Top 10 Outfielders

6. Carlos Beltran (1998-2004, 24.7 WAR)

We told you Beltran would make an appearance eventually. The former Rookie of the Year checks in at No. 6 on this list after putting together five-and-a-half solid season with the Kansas City Royals.

After featuring in just 14 games in 1998, Beltran put together a sensational rookie campaign in 1999. He won the Rookie of the Year award easily over Seattle’s Freddy Garcia and others, picking up all but two first-place votes.

Beltran blasted 27 home runs and drove in 108 runs. His triple-slash line was a stellar .293/.337/.454. The switch-hitter scored 112 runs and even stole 27 bases while playing 156 games.

He won the Rookie of the Year award easily over Seattle’s Freddy Garcia and others, picking up all but two first-place votes.

His numbers fell off considerably while only featuring in 98 games in 2000. However, Beltran bounced back to drive in 100 runs in each of his remaining seasons with the Kansas City Royals. He plated 101, 105 and 100 over his last three full seasons with the team.

During the 2004 season, the Royals traded Beltran to the Astros. That season he wound up with a combined 38 home runs—a career-high—and 104 RBI. Of those, 15 home runs and 51 RBI came in just 69 games with the Royals. Beltran also set his career high in stolen bases in 2004 with a combined 42—14 in Kansas City and 28 in Houston.

The subsequent offseason, Beltran signed with the New York Mets. He spent several successful years in the Big Apple before another midseason trade—this time to San Francisco in 2011. Since then, he’s spent time with the Cardinals, Yankees and Rangers. Prior to the 2017 season, the now-40-year-old signed with the Astros.

No matter where he goes, Kansas City will always be the place Beltran got his likely Hall-of-Fame career off to a flying start.