KC Royals: Scariest Players in Team History
By Joel Wagler
A general view of the Kansas City Royals home – Kauffman Stadium – Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
The KC Royals are playing in their second straight World Series, and their fourth ever, but their history is littered with some scary players.
As a Halloween treat, the idea for a list of the scariest players in the history of the Kansas City Royals seemed appropriate.
Of course, there are many forms of scary. There is scary bad, scary good, scary for the opponents, scary for the hometown fans, and sometimes, just downright frightening.
The Royals have had some scary good teams and more than their fair share of incredibly frighteningly awful teams through the decades.
Still, this is a pretty fun list. Don’t take it too seriously. Just think about some of the scarier players in your mind over the years.
The Scariest Players in KC Royals History – Number Five: Steve Balboni
Really, Steve Balboni? Scary? Well, for the times, he was a big guy at 6’3″, 225 pounds, and he did have that scary mustache going.
More importantly, he was a threat in the middle of the Royals lineup, and could crush the stuffing out of a baseball – when he actually made contact. Balboni is one of the Royals greatest home run hitters ever, yet he struck out more times than games he played in (566 games, 568 strikeouts).
Still, he still holds the Royals all-time single-season home run record. He bashed 36 round-trippers and struck out a Major League-leading 166 times, in the World Championship season of 1985.
In his four-plus seasons with the KC Royals, Balboni slugged 119 home runs, yet hit just .230. His On Base Percentage was a puny .294.
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While he could be scary for opponents, this teddy bear of a player also could be a terrifying hole in the line-up. In 69 post-season plate appearances, Balboni hit .197 with zero extra base hits.
Next: Shortstop Purgatory