Kansas City Royals
The Kansas City Royals are a professional baseball club in Kansas City, founded by Ewing Kauffman and playing since 1969.
Contents20 sections
Key facts
January 11, 1968An expansion franchise awarded
After the Athletics moved to Oakland, the league awarded Kansas City’s new franchise to Ewing Kauffman. Cedric Tallis became its first general manager.[1]
The Royals name referred to the local American Royal livestock show and parade.[2]
April 8, 1969The first game
The Royals began their first season with a 4–3, 12-inning win over the Twins at Municipal Stadium.[2]
1971–1974The baseball academy experiment
The baseball academy closed in 1974 because of high costs and limited results. Frank White was a graduate.[1]
April 10, 1973Royals Stadium opens
The new home featured outfield fountains and a crown-shaped scoreboard.[2]
1976–1980Three division titles and a first AL pennant
Whitey Herzog led three division winners from 1976 through 1978, all beaten by the Yankees in the ALCS.[3]
In 1980 George Brett hit .390 and won AL MVP honors. Kansas City reached its first World Series but lost to the Phillies.[4]
1985A first World Series championship
An 11–0 victory over the Cardinals in Game 7 secured the first world championship.[5]
1990–1993The closing years of Brett’s career
Brett’s third batting title in 1990 made him the first batting champion in three different decades. He spent 21 seasons with Kansas City, recording 3,154 hits and 317 home runs before retiring in 1993 and entering the Hall of Fame in 1999.[4]
1993Stadium renaming and Kauffman’s death
The park became Kauffman Stadium. Before his death, Kauffman arranged for sale proceeds to benefit local charities and required a buyer to keep the team in Kansas City.[2]
2000–2006Glass takes over and Moore arrives
David Glass bought the team in 2000 and hired Dayton Moore as general manager in 2006.[3]
2014A return to the World Series
Kansas City swept the Angels and Orioles before losing World Series Game 7 to the Giants.[3]
2015A second world championship
Ned Yost’s club beat the Mets in five games for its second championship.[6]
Eric Hosmer’s dash home in the ninth inning of Game 5 tied the score 2–2, sending the clincher into extra innings.[5]
November 2019
John Sherman’s group completed the purchase.[7]
2023–2024Rebound
Wins rose from 56 to 86.[8]
Kansas City returned to the 2024 postseason and swept the Orioles in the Wild Card round.[3]
The Yankees then eliminated Kansas City in the Division Series.[9]
January 2026
Matt Quatraro extended through 2029.[10]
April 2026
Plans call for a Crown Center ballpark with Hallmark.[11]
202669–93
The Royals missed the postseason.[12]
October 2026Legislative progress for the new ballpark
The City Council approved financing and zoning ordinances for the Crown Center ballpark district. Plans called for groundbreaking in May 2027 and a home opener in March 2030.[13]
Home ballpark and ownership
The home ballpark is Kauffman Stadium.[14]
John Sherman owns the club.[15]
Related Organizations, Websites, and Public Accounts
Kansas City Royals: Official website: https://www.mlb.com/royals (opens in a new window).[16]
Kansas City Royals: X: https://x.com/royals (opens in a new window).[17]
Kansas City Royals: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kcroyals (opens in a new window).[18]
Kansas City Royals: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/royals (opens in a new window).[19]
Kansas City Royals: YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is Google’s video-sharing and creator platform, founded in 2005 by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim and acquired by Google in 2006. Built around video uploading, viewing, and creator earnings, the platform has developed Shorts, YouTube Music, Premium, YouTube TV, and products for children, and is headquartered in San Bruno, California, United States.Open the full entry: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvA2SgPVi3Hw6n_WER0VrcQ (opens in a new window).[20]
Sources
- Ewing Kauffman (opens in a new window)
- The Kauffman Years | 1968–1993 (opens in a new window)
- Kansas City Royals History (opens in a new window)
- George Brett (opens in a new window)
- Kansas City Royals Starting Nine (opens in a new window)
- World Series parades date back more than 100 years (opens in a new window)
- John Sherman and co-investors finalize purchase of the Kansas City Royals (opens in a new window)
- Royals hope ALDS loss will light a torch for next season (opens in a new window)
- Gerrit Cole tosses playoff gem, shutting down Royals and sending Yankees back to ALCS (opens in a new window)
- With eye on stability, Royals extend Quatraro through 2029 (opens in a new window)
- Royals, Hallmark Cards unveil plan to bring Major League Baseball downtown (opens in a new window)
- Royals look to rebound in 2027 after disappointing 2026 season (opens in a new window)
- Final Royals stadium hurdles cleared, Mayor Lucas says (opens in a new window)
- History of Kauffman Stadium (opens in a new window)
- Sherman dedicated to investing in city’s future with stadium, offseason plans (opens in a new window)
- Kansas City Royals official website (opens in a new window)
- Kansas City Royals — x (opens in a new window)
- Kansas City Royals — instagram (opens in a new window)
- Kansas City Royals — facebook (opens in a new window)
- Kansas City Royals — youtube (opens in a new window)