KC Royals: Ten Greatest Moments In Royals History
By John Viril
NUMBER FIVE GEORGE BRETT PASSES .400 MARK, 1980
Anyone who has read this far should be getting a pretty good idea why the KC Royals put a statue of George Brett in front of Kauffman Stadium.
I don’t think this one needs too much explanation. Ted Williams was the last man to hit .400 in the major leagues – in 1941.
Since then, George Brett, Rod Carew, and Tony Gwynn have all made runs at Williams’ mark. In 1980, George Brett was at .400 as late as September 19.
More from Royals All-Time Lists
- Best Opening Day starts in Kansas City Royals history
- Kansas City Royals best all-time first basemen in franchise history
- KC Royals: Historical roster of greats who briefly played in Kansas City
- Kansas City Royals: Top Second Basemen In Franchise History
- Kansas City Royals: Top all-time home run hitters
That’s close.
George Brett season was so remarkable, we even had “George Brett For President” bumper stickers since 1980 was a presidential campaign year.
On that August day in 1980, Brett surged past the .400 mark with a double off Toronto starter Jim Clancy. Not only did Brett post a .400 average for the season that day, he also broke up a 2-2 tie by driving in two runs.
Yeah. Not only did Brett pass .400, his hit broke up a 7th inning tie during a pennant race.
How’s that for clutch?
Next: October 10, 1980