KC Royals: 6 great and unbreakable franchise records

No KC Royals player will equal what George Brett accomplished in 1980.

The Royals reached their first World Series in 1980. Willie Wilson stole 79 bases and hit .326 that year. Dennis Leonard won 20 games, Larry Gura added 18, and the starting rotation accounted for 75 of the club’s 97 wins.

No one, though, could steal the spotlight from George Brett and his serious challenge to .400, a mark no player had reached since Ted Williams hit .406 in 1941. Brett fell short at .390, the highest average in club history.

That he came so close to .400—just a few more hits would have done the trick—is surprising considering the 11-time .300 hitter didn’t (save for a .364 average after three games) reach that level until a 3-for-4 night against the White Sox pushed him to .301 May 31.

Brett never fell below .300 again. The future Hall of Famer hit .472 in June, .494 in July and .430 in August to head into the season’s final full month at .403, leaving .400 within reach.

It didn’t happen. Brett slowed and his average dropped below .390 for the first time since Aug. 12 when an 0-for-3 Sept. 24 performance forced him to .389. He hit .407 over the Royals’ last eight games but it wasn’t enough.

He finished with a major league leading .390/.454/.664 slash line and 203 OPS+, won the AL MVP and a Silver Slugger, and made the All-Star team.

Will any Royal ever break Brett’s .390 single-season team record?

No.

Willie Wilson, Paul Splittorff, Dennis Leonard, the 2004 team, and George Brett all hold Royal records that won’t be broken.