Kansas City Royals: Reflecting on Loss of Yordano Ventura

The death of Yordano Ventura impacted the Kansas City Royals in the clubhouse and in the front office in 2017. After one season without Ace, here’s how things in the organization look for the future.

Those outside of the Kansas City metro have likely grown weary of hearing about how the Kansas City Royals are so much like a family. In every other instance of someone comparing a team to a family or calling the fans the best in the world, it seems like such a cliché. Not in this case.

For the better part of a decade, the Kansas City Royals franchise had been left in the dust and forgotten. The ownership of the franchise was up in the air, and the team was a shell of its former self. In 2006, following a disappointing group of prospects who all either fizzled out, left via free agency or got traded, the Royals introduced former Atlanta Braves assistant general manager and Wichita, Kansas, native Dayton Moore to try to help to turn things around.

Moore laid out a bold plan from day one. He envisioned an organization with a strong sense of togetherness. He wanted a never-before-seen connection between the team and fanbase. Moore committed to being patient and encouraging growth and prosperity of all of the young men in the system. Lastly, he guaranteed success within a decade. Fat chance, right?

Wrong.

Moore threw all of his resources into scouting. He swore that he would build a successful organization through the draft and international free agency. It seemed improbable, but we met our family members this way.