Hope springs eternal.
The Kansas City Royals traded for California Angels pitcher Ervin Santana this week, which many fans think is a step that will improve a floundering starting rotation.
I liked the move, but that’s understandable. I’ve been a fan of Kansas City baseball since Arnold Johnson purchased the Philadelphia A’s and moved them to the Midwest in 1955.
The highlight of my long love affair with KC baseball came in 1985 when the Royals won the World Series. Difficulties the current franchise has had in winning games in recent years is nothing new to such a die-hard fan as I.
Bud Daley was a favorite of mine in those early years of following the A’s. He was a knuckleballing left-hander, who won 16 games in both 1959 and 1960. He also was a pretty fair hand at the plate. He drove in 13 runs in 1959.
Mostly, though, the A’s were pathetic until the late 1960s, when Charlie Finley broke many a fan’s heart by moving the team to Oakland — just when several young stars were starting to blossom. On the West Coast things clicked and the Athletics won frequently, even some titles.
In 1969, after a year’s absence, baseball returned to Kansas City.
I saw one of the first games the Royals played in old Municipal Stadium, with Lou Pinella, their left-fielder, getting a hit to win the game.
The Royals aggressively stocked their farm system with highly regarded young players, which paid off with good pitching, and homegrown stars such as George Brett, Frank White and Willie Wilson. For a decade they were mighty good, before the franchise fell on hard times and finally was sold to David Glass, of Walmart fame.
Social media has opened the door wide for criticism of what Dayton Moore, the Royals’ young general manager, has done — and not done. From my perspective, I like what’s happening to KC baseball today.
The farm system is bursting at the seams with talent, and the major league roster is stocked with promising young position players, as well as the bullpen. The concern, and one of the hardest of any team to rectify, is putting together a sterling starting rotation.
I don’t think the day is far off when pennants again will fly over Kauffman Stadium.
There’s always next season
