Kansas City Royals: Faces of the franchise

Closing Remarks

In wake of recent departures, you may question who is in charge of guiding the ship that is the Kansas City Royals over the next few years. Fear not. The team will become a contender again and in the meantime, there are plenty of veterans to teach the younger guys in the clubhouse.

Salvador Perez is the face of the Royals. He’s on track to potentially have his number retired one day by the team. One of the best catchers in all of baseball, he’ll be heavily relied upon moving forward.

Although Alex Gordon is showing age (or is just this bad now), he’s the longest-tenured player on the team and is one of few vocal leaders in the clubhouse. He’s very important.

Nearly everyone in the clubhouse, on the field and in Kansas City loves Danny Duffy. He wants to retire a Royal. You can’t ask for much more out of him in terms of leadership.

Whit Merrifield lagged a bit behind the other guys, but he’s now one of the best players on the club. As a result of that, he should become a more vocal leader in 2018. Because his place on the team is more secure, the likelihood of this happening is even higher.

No matter how crazy things get over the next few years, the Royals will definitely have a few players around to remind everyone of the goal: becoming a contender again.

Next: Predicting the Spring Training Stat Leaders

What do you think, Royals fans? Are there any other guys within the organization you think are pillars of the future? Let us know what you have to say!