Random Royals I Kinda Miss Having Around

I named my oldest son after him, kind of.

He reached hights unsurpassed for the Royals at SS, and was around for short enough that his one year stands out as a glaming ray of light. Berroa, Aviles all went downhill after a good start. Not Jay.

Shane Costa – I expected him to become a decent 4th OF. Thankfully Mitch has filled that role. I still love Mitch. And hell, Costa isn’t dead yet!

Neal Musser – minor league grinder. 4.21 career ERA in 18 MLB games! He would have been fine.

Luke Hudson – He migrated over from the Reds at the same time I was migrating over from being a Reds fan to a Royals fan. We walked the same path in life. And he was just fine as a pitcher.

I liked Ducky as well. And Jimmy Gobble. Craig Brazell signed my hat one day. He was Kila before Kila was cool. Of course, Huber was Brazell before Brazell was cool, and Pickering was Huber before Huber … etc etc etc

Some Royals I just do not miss at all. TPJ, sucked at least a few hours out of my life. Angel Berroa, God I used to hate to see him at the plate. Watching him hack caused me great upset several hundred times a season. Ambiorix Burgos, God he never learned a thing in three years! Burgos still had no idea how to finish a batter when he left KC. I think he is in jail now.

first time he gets on base as a Royal was catchers interferance, got to miss that guy.

I liked Sedlacek as well. Thought he had really good command.

Ruben Gotay. Always thought he was going to be what Wilson Betimet is now.

Andres Blanco. Couldn’t hit a lick but he could play some defense.

Jason Jacome. I went to a game where he tossed a CG shutout for the Royals when I was younger, so I always thought he was going to turn it around.

Rusty Meachem – the guy just seemed to love being in the big leagues

Steve Shifflett – KC kid and a sidearmer. Never understood why we didn’t give him more of a chance.

one of Baird’s best trades (which is sad).

I was staunchly on the side of Pickering in the Harvey/Pickering debate of ‘04/’05. He was the original Kila — he could mash AAA pitching but for whatever reason, they didn’t think he could do it in the majors.

I was ecstatic when he made the majors out of camp, in part because the old guard (Flanagan, Kaegal, etc.) were beside themselves at how the Royals could send “All-Star” Ken Harvey to the minors for some unproven minor league guy. He even managed to hit a home run the first game of the season. Aside from that HR, Pickering started off slowly, got something like 27 ABs over 16 games, and was done for good. IIRC, at the beginning of that season, his wife was going through a very difficult pregnancy, and nearly died, so he may have been a little distracted.

And like Retro, any list would be incomplete without Justin Huber.

beat the crap out of a fan in Chicago, so he’s alright with me.

Mike Kingery: began his major league career with a nine-game hitting streak. Of course, then they traded him for some no-name failed shortstop. Danny something.

I’m surprised he only had 117 PAs for the Royals. I thought it was much more than that. His grittyness should have earned him more playing time.

Always liked Guiel, but just because no one has said it yet, I’m going with Bill Pecota.

My Desi and Mark will both hit for the cycle tomorrow

Overcame Tourettes Syndrome to put together a good MLB career. Had some decent seasons in KC before really blossoming in his mid-30’s with some good seasons for the Phillies. That late career hitting improvement in the mid-90’s makes me think steroids, but who knows. He had a nice combination of defense, hitting and speed and is underappreciated.

Rich Gale, a wild man from New Hampshire. Later a Giant, in an era when the Royals really were better than the Giants.

Stairs. Not enough fat/softball-player-looking guys on this team.

Keppinger, mostly because he’s got a decent bat at the middle IF position, which is not something the Royals are big on right now.

Emil Brown. Dude spent the best 2 years of his career (plus one not so good) on Royals teams that lost 100 games. I remember seeing him at Spring Training before the 2005 season. I’d tell my brother back in KC – “This Emil Brown guy looks pretty good. I think he’s going to make the team!”. Brother – “Who?”

He had 6 PAs with the Mets last year and looks to be done (unless he’s in the minors somewhere?).

When I was eight and my father took me to a game and explained baseball to me, he hit a key home run in a win against the Yankees (and that’s all I remember about the game, though when I go back and look at the box score, apparently Mariano Rivera was the starting pitcher.)

Represented hope for me that year. Also was just nerdy/fat/soft looking which made him especially easy to root for.

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/group.php?gid=2200785071&ref=ts

That is the facebook group called Obscure Baseball Players Fan Club. I am officer Greg Gagne. haha

So my favorite obscure/past Royals are Jeff King, Carlos Febles, Joe Vitiello, Joe Randa, Gagne and of course Gary Gaetti.

Blake Stein- Me and my friends really had some laughs with Steiner. He just looked so funny out there, and every once in a while the cameras would catch him clowning around in the dugout, like doing the “what’s that on your shirt” routine. I think Stein came over in the Appier trade? With Jeff D’Amico? I also liked D’Amico. At the time I thought that trade was just swell.

Jeff Reboulet- I started a fan club at the time called the “Reboul Rousers”. Still wear the t-shirt on occassion. We used to make signs for him at the games. One time he came and talked to us afterwards. He seemed really confused.

Chad Durbin- I probably liked him because he was really good-looking. Don’t we all like handsome athletes better? You know, guys like Durbin, A-Rod, Jeter, Julian Tavarez….

Febles- I once famously guaranteed he would be the better of the Dos Carlos. Was I wrong? Who can say?

Wilson Delgado- I loved his helicopter throwing motion

Curtis Leskanic- This was another of my gang’s favorites. We used to dress up as mechanics and go the games with signs that said “Leskanic’s Mechanics”. God, we really thought we were funny. The people sitting around us were probably annoyed. I know I would’ve been.

Buddy Biancalana. I remember that he was on Letterman after the Royals won the Series.

Hi-PAL-i-to or Hi-Pa-LI-to? I say the later.

I remember that thing being dirty

Loved Gagne……I don’t know what the defensive metrics would say about him today, but back then it seemed like he was a black hole where grounders went to a parallel universe….

Pat Tabler
Goodwin
Dane Iorg
Rusty Meachem
Steve Farr
UL
Louis Aquino
Lockhart
BRETT COOKSON

Keith Lockheart
Bip Roberts
Hipolito Pichardo
Jamie Bluma
Chris Haney
Darrell May
Brent Mayne
Tom Poquette
Tim Belcher

Basically if they were a scrappy utility guy or pitcher I liked them.

Immortal shop lifter.