Archive for July 2012
Billy Butler was named AL Player of the Week today. This is a big honor because the team was terrible during that stretch. While his numbers weren’t staggering (.458 average, 1 HR, 6 RBI) they were still impressive. He continues to be a great hitter and a rare bright spot for the Kansas City Royals. The picture with the facebook article was cool so it inspired me to do a custom card. I thought since his hand was higher than his head it would make a nice 1988 card so it would break into the team name at the top.
Kansas City Star All-Time Royals team card set
Here is a nice little Royals collectable; it is a card set of the all-time Royals team presented by the Kansas City Star. This was compiled in 1993 on the 25th anniversary of the team. I don’t know where this was available but I’m guessing it was given away in the paper.
If you can’t tell here is the rollcall for the card set starting in the top left: Dick Howser, Hal McRae, Darrell Porter, Dan Quisenberry, Dennis Leonard, Bret Saberhagen, Paul Splittorff, Steve Busby, John Mayberry, Frank White, Fred Patek, George Brett, Amos Otis, Willie Wilson and Al Cowens.
The Royals have logged another 19 years since this time but I don’t think many of the slots would change. I know Whitey Herzog should be the manager instead of Dick Howser but that hasn’t changed in the last 19 years. I would say the most likely change would be Mike Sweeney edging out Big John Mayberry at first but I’m not sure. Johnny Damon and Carlos Beltran could make a run at pushing out Al Cowens as well.
This is a nice Royals item and is worth picking up if you can ever find one… they aren’t very common, plus it looks nice as an uncut sheet matted with powder blue in a picture frame on the wall.
Cool Charlie Leibrandt fact: Finished 5th in the AL in Cy Young voting in 1985 (teammate Bret Saberhagen won the Cy Young) He had a career highs in wins (17) and ERA (2.69) in helping the Royals win the World Series.
Ryan Verdugo made his major league debut on July 17th, 2012 and was one of the worst debut’s in recent memory. He was thrown into the mix as a starting pitcher the Royals officially punted his trade-mate Jonathan Sanchez and ultimately traded him. So Verdugo may have been thrown in a little prematuraly partly because Sanchez pitched so badly and he had to fill in. The Royals may have also felt pressure to prove they didn’t get nothing in return for Melky Cabrera.
He threw just 1 2/3 innings while giving up 6 runs on 8 hits, so yes, more runs given up than outs recorded.
Cool Larry Gura facts: Gura Finished in the top 10 in AL Cy Young voting 3 out of 4 years (1978, 1980, 1981) and won 10 or more games for 7 straight years for the Royals (1978-1984)
Joakim Soria hasn’t been on the mound this year but the History of Joakim Soria project lives on. This installment is 2008 Topps. Topps went back to the classic white border after the 2007 Topps black border cards. The card is very playful with the lettering at the top in the multi-colored circles. The border is large and takes a ton of room away from the picture on the card. The signature is a nice touch that I always liked but this card design ranks pretty low on my list of Topps’ designs.
What is the best way to be a Royals fan right now? Concentrate on the great past instead of the dismal present.
This is the list of the 36 Greatest Royals so far in no particular order:
- Hal McRae
- Zack Greinke
- Willie Wilson
- Paul Splittorff
- Jeff Montgomery
- Mike Sweeney
- Dennis Leonard
- David Dejesus
- Cookie Rojas
- Amos Otis
- Al Cowens
Cool Al Cowens fact: Finished second in the 1977 AL MVP voting and won a gold glove that same year. He had 23 Home Runs, 112 RBI and batted .312 while throwing out 14 runners from the outfield.
This is the list of the 36 Greatest Royals so far in no particular order:
- Hal McRae
- Zack Greinke
- Willie Wilson
- Paul Splittorff
- Jeff Montgomery
- Mike Sweeney
- Dennis Leonard
- David Dejesus
- Cookie Rojas
- Amos Otis
Several more are to come, stay tuned…
A Hair Off Square 