No. 1) George Brett, third baseman/first baseman,1973-93
OK, I’ll openly admit that this was the least suspenseful countdown in history, at least when we’re talking about No. 1.
More from Kings of Kauffman
- KC Royals Rumors: Is a monster move in the cards?
- KC Royals Free Agent Hunt: 3 Tampa Bay pitchers
- Grading the 2022 KC Royals: The $25 million man
- KC Royals Winter Meetings Tracker: Expectations met
- KC Royals Winter Meetings Tracker: Day 3 update
No one in Kansas City Royals history compares to Brett. He owns some of the best individual offensive seasons in club history, as well as the best overall career. The list of achievements and records goes on and on. Twenty-one seasons with one team. Thirteen All-Star games. Three Silver Slugger Awards. Three batting titles, including a .390 average in his MVP season of 1980. Over 3,100 hits — more than any other third baseman in history. A Gold Glove Award. A World Series title. A National Baseball Hall of Fame induction. His No. 5 retired forever.
All of that for just $23.5 million.
However, Brett is not just revered for his achievements on the field. He has been a familiar face to an entire new generation of Kansas City Royals fans as a coach, ambassador, instructor and front office member. Brett frequently appears at Royals events and Opening Day. He is, by any measure, “Mr. Royal.”
Next: Top moments of 2015 playoff run
So, what did you think of the countdown? Did we miss any player that you would have included? Should a player have been higher or lower on our list? Let us know in the comments