Kansas
City Royals fans are hopeful that the second half of this
decade will result in something better than 2005’s
100-game losing streak. Despite a dismal last few years,
the Royals still pack a crowded house, selling enough
baseball tickets in 2004 to fill Kauffman Stadium to the
rafters with a record-breaking 60,000 fans!
So
what do fans have to look forward to? The Royals team
these days is a mixture of veterans and youngsters. Mike
Sweeney, Doug Mientkiewicz and Reggie Sanders round out
some of the veteran starters that, if they remain healthy,
might give a glimmer of hope toward future successful
seasons. Youngsters David DeJesus and Justin Huber are
players for fans to keep an eye on. However, fans shouldn’t
get their hopes up too high for a championship title just
yet. The team will be working with new manager Buddy Bell,
whose track record isn’t much better than the Royals’.
The
Royals are a team that comes from the back to finish hard.
In 1967, the Athletics left Kansas City, but the next
year the city gained an expansion team, which became the
Royals, and began its quest to become the fastest achieving
expansion team in the history of baseball at that time.
The
1970s proved to be an exciting time for owners of Royals
tickets. In 1973 the Royals moved into the plush Royals
Stadium and acquired George Brett. By 1975, The Royals
had swiftly climbed to the top of baseball's elite teams
to come in second to the Oakland A’s. After finishing
in second place in the ALCS for several years, a feat
that had fans scrambling for Kauffman Stadium baseball
tickets, a manager change set the stage for the 1980 trip
to the World Series. George Brett gave fans an exciting
quest for a .400 batting average but ended up finishing
with a .390.
The 1990s proved the end of many eras. Grand Slam king
George Brett and 8-time Golden Glove winner Frank White
retired, and original owner E. Kauffman died. One high
point was the induction of Brett into the baseball Hall
of Fame in 1999.
Hopefully,
the Royals will use this time to grow their younger players
so they can return as a championship contender soon. Who
knows, they could be this year’s surprise team,
if the veterans stay sound and the youngsters step up
to the plate with confidence. If not, fans can still use
their Royals tickets to enjoy the Kauffman Stadium scenery—the
340-foot-long water fountain is a sight to behold!
.