Open Letter to New Generation of Kansas City Royals Fans

This is for the Kansas City Royals fans who jumped on the bandwagon and quickly fell in love with a group of players—many of whom are set to leave. Here’s a plea to continue showing your support.

Dear, “New Generation” of Kansas City Royals fans,

We’re writing this letter to explain why you should not abandon the Boys in Blue, even though it appears many of the team’s core players will do that same thing this offseason. We understand it’s not easy to say goodbye to a large chunk of the only group of Royals you have ever known.

It’s hard for us, too. We’ve seen more players come and go than we can remember. But this group was something special. They were so special that you decided to come join us at Kauffman Stadium to cheer them on.

And we loved having you. That’s why we’re asking you to stay.

It’s looking like next year—and maybe the next several—could be a struggle, depending on how the winter months play out. But that is when we need you most of all.

Rebuilds are difficult. They are unpredictable and time-consuming messes. If done right, they can lead a franchise back to the pinnacle of the sport. And trust us, it’s so mush sweeter to reach the top of that mountain when you’ve put in all those hours toiling in the valley.

You know what makes rebuilds more depressing than they already can be? Seeing one play out in front of a half-empty ballpark. Attendance at The K has been outstanding the past several seasons—in large part due to you. For that, we thank you.

But we also plead for you to keep coming out. Continue to bring your friends and family out to the ballgame. The way to accelerate a rebuild is for you to keep spending money on tickets, concessions and memorabilia. Rebuilds often stagnate a franchise, because a sense of apathy takes over within the fanbase.

We call you the “new generation” for a reason.

Terms such as bandwagon and fair-weather fans don’t apply to you. We hope. You might have come around when times are good, but those other fans leave when times get bad. We need you to rebuke that idea.

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Your constant support is a crucial piece to the puzzle. Without it, there’s a gaping hole in the Kansas City Royals. We have been carrying the torch for the team longer than we can remember. But, as evidenced by the state of things before you came along, we weren’t doing so hot for the longest time.

When things started going well in 2014, we welcomed you with open arms. We helped introduce you to the players who you now can’t imagine seeing in a different uniform.

The thought hurts us, too. But please don’t run from the pain. Turn to us for help. We will get through this together.

As a group, we can watch the careers of Raul Mondesi, Jorge Bonifacio and Jake Junis blossom, while welcoming whatever new crop of homegrown stars make their way to the Kansas City Royals.

It won’t be easy to move on. It never is. But your presence will be vital in helping that process.

Please don’t abandon us now.

You have plenty of seemingly valid reasons for wanting to walk away. But please don’t abandon us just because your favorite player—be it Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas or Lorenzo Cain—ends up elsewhere. We will help you pick a new favorite player. Whit Merrifield, perhaps?

And please don’t stop coming because you don’t think the team has any chance to make the playoffs. Just look at the Minnesota Twins this season. The franchise that lost 103 games in 2016 beat out the Kansas City Royals and several others for a spot in the American League Wild Card Game.

Crazy things happen in baseball, and we want to be able to share them with you.

Next: Top 10 Moments from 2017 Season

Sincerely,

Kansas City Royals die-hard fans