The KC Royals have hosted 2 of city’s 3 All-Star Games

Last season, the KC Royals had two players crack the 2021 All-Star roster in Salvador Perez and Whit Merrifield. The game, played in Colorado, marked the eighth straight victory for the American League.

The last time the National League won was in 2012, the second time the Royals hosted the annual competition. They first welcomed the All Stars in 1973 during the inaugural season for Royals (now Kauffman) Stadium. And the Kansas City Athletics hosted the Midsummer Classic at old Municipal Stadium in 1960.

The Athletics were the first Kansas City team to host the MLB All-Star Game.

Although the 28th MLB All-Star Game was played July 11, 1960, Kansas City wasn’t the only All-Star venue that year—the 29th Game took place at Yankee Stadium just two days later. From 1959-1962, the American and National Leagues played two All-Star Games per season. The reason was simple—per an agreement with the Major League Baseball Players Association, second game profits went to the players’ pension fund.

Kansas City’s 1960 game featured a plethora of baseball greats and future Hall of Famers, including Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks, Yogi Berra, Mickey Mantle, Ted Williams, and Al Kaline, just to name a few.

Mays led off for the National League with a triple. Bob Skinner knocked him in with a single, and Banks smashed a home run to propel the NL to a 3-0 lead in the first inning.

The American League couldn’t muster anything against starting pitcher Bob Friend of the Pirates, who notched two strikeouts and surrendered just one hit through the first three innings. By the time the AL mounted a comeback with Nellie Fox’s RBI single in the sixth and Kaline’s two-run homer in the seventh, it was too late as the National League came out on top 5-3.

The KC Royals hosted the 1973 All-Star Game in brand new Royals Stadium.

Kansas City’s replacement for Municipal Stadium was new to the Royals and the All-Star Game in 1973. And just like 1960, the contest was packed with baseball’s biggest names—playing at Royals Stadium were such greats as Hank Aaron, Pete Rose, Johnny Bench, Rod Carew, Reggie Jackson, Brooks Robinson, Carlton Fisk, Catfish Hunter, Willie Stargell, Willie Mays, Tom Seaver, Carl Yastrzemski, and Nolan Ryan.

Three Royals played in the game. Amos Otis was elected to start, and John Mayberry got his starting nod after Chicago’s Dick Allen was injured. Cookie Rojas was one of the reserve players, and future Royals manager Whitey Herzog was a coach on the American League staff.

Hunter and Ken Holtzman got the AL off to a good start by holding the NL scoreless through the first two innings. In the bottom of the second, Jackson led off with a double and Otis singled him home to put the AL up 1-0.

That proved to be the AL’s only run, and the NL got everything it needed the next inning when César Cedeño and Aaron smacked run-scoring singles against Bert Blyleven to give their club a 2-1 lead. Home runs by Bench, Bobby Bonds and Willie Davis accounted for the Nationals’ remaining runs and they won 7-1.

As for the Royals, Otis finished 2-for-2 with a single, stolen base, and his RBI, Mayberry went 1-for-3 with a double and a walk, and Rojas walked in his only plate appearance.