Kansas City Royals: Players Missed in the MLB Draft
This post would have been a lot more depressing had the Kansas City Royals not been coming off their first World Series title in three decades.
For years, the KC Royals were the laughing stock of the MLB. They lost 100 games three seasons in a row, had 21 losing seasons since their last World Series title in 1985, and went 29 years without a postseason appearance.
A large part of the Royals sucking so bad for so long was that their draft picks just weren’t panning out. The Royals saw a lot of missed opportunities come and go, but the bright side is that those first round draft picks from the mid-late 00s have blossomed quite nicely, and the boys in blue now have a World Series title to their name as a result.
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In 2004, the Royals selected Billy Butler, who went on to be one of the favorites in Kansas City. He since moved onto Oakland, but easily had his best years right here in Kansas City. The Royals succeeded there.
The next year, Alex Gordon became a member of the organization. He struggled at his original position of third base, but was put in the outfield and is now a four-time Gold Glove winning left fielder and three-time All-Star. He got his World Series ring when he signed on with the team for the largest contract in franchise history.
Mike Moustakas joined the team in 2007 and after looking like another bust for the franchise, became an All-Star third baseman in 2015 and won a World Series title with the team that drafted him.
Eric Hosmer was the next guy to join the Royals in 2008, and he’s gone on to maybe be the most popular Royal ever. His exit from the Justin Bieber concert in April shows how adored Hosmer is in Kansas City, and if he ever leaves the team, it’ll be a very different vibe without him around.
Next: All-Time Worst Defenders in Royals History
So while the Kansas City Royals did miss out on some big players, that’s to be expected. They’ve also hit home runs with quite a few of their early round draft picks and those guys helped the team win a World Series. Isn’t that what this game is all about anyway?
What do you think, Royals nation? Who are some other guys you can think of who the Royals majorly missed on in the draft?