The most beloved Royals of all-time - Yost bracket

We conclude our first round of brackets for the most beloved Royals player in club history. We took the top players in club history, seeded them roughly by value by WAR, and divided the players into four eras - the Herzog bracket (1969-1980), the Howser bracket (1981-1994), the Muser bracket (1995-2010), and the Yost bracket (2011-2019).

You can vote on the Muser bracket here, the Howser bracket here, and the Herzog bracket here. Now, we vote on the Yost bracket. Remember, you are voting for who is your FAVORITE Royals player, not necessarily who was the best. Voting will continue until Monday morning.

#1 Alex Gordon vs. #16 Jorge Soler

Gordon is fourth all-time among Royals position players in WAR with 35.1, having spent all 13 of his seasons in Kansas City. He has been known as the best defensive left fielder in the game with seven Gold Gloves, including a Platinum Glove for best all-around defender in 2014. Gordon is a three-time All-Star, who is sixth in club history in hits, fourth in home runs, sixth in runs scored, and fifth in doubles. He led the league in doubles in 2012, and was top ten in the league in hits in 2011 and 2012.

Jorge Soler was the first league home run leader in Royals history when he blasted 48 home runs in 2019, setting a single-season club record. Soler also played in every single game in 2019, and finished second in RBI with 117, fourth in total bases, seventh in OPS, and ninth in Runs Created. In three seasons in Kansas City, the slugger has hit .252/.342/.510, and his slugging percentage is the second-most by any Royals player with at least 1,000 plate appearances.

#8 Alcides Escobar vs. #9 Billy Butler

Alcides Escobar was a gifted defensive shortstop whose clutch hitting earned him 2015 ALCS MVP honors. He also earned his only All-Star appearance that year and won his only Gold Glove. Three times Escobar has played in all 162 games in a season. He finished fifth in the league in steals in both 2012 and 2014. He has also finished top ten in the league in triples four times, and his 43 career triples are tenth-most in club history. In eight seasons with the Royals, Escobar hit .259/.292/.344 with 8.6 WAR.

Billy Butler spent eight seasons in Kansas City after they drafted him in the first round, hitting .295/.359/.449. his .295 batting average is sixth-best in club history, and his 1,273 career hits are eight-most. Billy earned his only All-Star appearance in 2012 in Kansas City, slamming a career-high 29 home runs with 107 RBI and a line of .313/.373/.510, earning his only Silver Slugger Award. Billy hit 147 home runs with the Royals, and topped a .300 batting average three times.

#4 Eric Hosmer vs. #13 James Shields

Eric Hosmer was known for coming up with clutch moments in the 2014/2015 playoffs, including a triple to set up the tying run in the 2014 Wild Card game, a bloop single to spark a comeback in Game 2 of the ALDS against Houston, and his famous dash home in Game 5 of the 2015 World Series against the Mets. Hosmer hit .284/.342/.439 in seven seasons with the Royals, with 127 home runs. He was an All-Star in 2016, earning the game’s MVP honors with a home run. He won four Gold Gloves at first base, and won the Silver Slugger Award in 2017, hitting .318/.385/.498 with 25 home runs.

James Shields was acquired from the Rays in 2013 in a blockbuster deal to lead the pitching staff to contention. In just two seasons in Kansas City, he won 27 games with a 3.18 ERA and 8.3 WAR. He led the AL in innings pitched in his first year in Kansas City and finished seventh in strikeouts, earning Cy Young award votes. He virtually equaled his numbers the next year and finished 18th in MVP voting. No AL pitcher tossed more innings than Shields did with the Royals in 2013-2014.

#5 Whit Merrifield vs. #12 Wade Davis

Whit was a late bloomer who went on to become one of the top leadoff hitters in baseball. He led the league in hits in both 2018 and 2019, with just the eighth 200-hit season in club history. He also became the first Royals player to lead the league in stolen bases twice, topping the league in 2017 and 2018. He also led the league in triples with 10 in 2019, and finished fourth in doubles. He earned his first All-Star appearance that year, finishing tenth in the league with a .302 batting average. In four seasons with the Royals, Merrifield has hit .296/.344/.445 with 107 steals.

Wade Davis overcame a terrible season as a starting pitcher to become one of the most feared relievers in baseball. From 2014 to 2016, he gave up just 24 earned runs in 182 ²⁄₃ innings with 234 strikeouts and just three home runs allowed, and his 1.18 ERA over that time was far and away the best in baseball. He was a two-time All-Star with the Royals, earning Cy Young votes in 2014 and 2015. He saved 43 games for the Royals, with an ERA of 2.94 in four seasons.

#2 Salvador Perez vs. #15 Yordano Ventura

The smiling Perez was the face of the team, dousing teammates with his “Salvy Splash” following wins. He is a six-time All-Star, and five-time Gold Glove winner. He has finished top ten in the league in defensive WAR four times, leading the league in caught stealing in 2012 and 2016. He won the Silver Slugger Award as the game’s top offensive catcher in 2016 and 2018. He was named 2015 World Series MVP for hitting .364 against the Mets, and has hit .348/.375/.478 in 12 career World Series games. His 141 home runs are eighth-most in club history and he has caught more games than anyone in Royals history.

Yordano Ventura was a flame-throwing right-handed pitcher with a bright future whose life was tragically cut short when he was involved in a fatal car crash after the 2016 season. He burst onto the scene in 2014 with 14 wins, a 3.20 ERA and 3.4 WAR, finishing sixth in Rookie of the Year voting. That fall, he gave an amazing performance in Game 6 of the World Series against the Giants, tossing seven shutout innings in a win, shortly after learning his friend Oscar Taveras had died.

#7 Danny Duffy vs. #10 Jarrod Dyson

Danny Duffy has spent his entire nine-year career with the Royals, winning 60 games with a 3.98 ERA and 17.3 WAR. his best year came in 2016 when he won 12 games and struck out 188, finishing ninth in the league in that category, and fifth in strikeouts-per-nine innings. Duffy is 11th in club history in WAR among pitchers and his 926 strikeouts are eighth in club history.

Jarrod Dyson was a sensational speedster and defensive whiz in the outfield. He has been successful on 85 percent of stolen base attempts, the fourth-best percentage in baseball since World War II. His 176 stolen bases with the Royals are sixth-most in club history, despite the fact he was never a full-time starter. Dyson hit .260/.325/.353 in seven seasons with the Royals, with 11.6 WAR, and 6.1 defensive WAR.

#3 Lorenzo Cain vs. #14 Kelvin Herrera

Lorenzo Cain emerged as one of the best defensive outfielders in baseball, with a solid bat in the middle of two pennant-winning ballclubs. His best year was in 2015 when he hit .307/.361/.477 with 16 home runs and 28 steals. His 7.0 WAR that year was fifth in the league, and he finished third in MVP voting, and earned his only All-Star appearance with the Royals. He also finished fifth in the league in runs scored and fifth in batting average. He finished top ten in the league in defensive WAR with the Royals, finishing second in 2013, but was annually snubbed for a Gold Glove Award. He hit .533 against the Orioles in the 2014 ALCS, earning MVP honors.

Kelvin Herrera was an outstanding setup man and part of the vaunted “HDH” trio coming out of the bullpen during the Royals’ championship runs. He was a two-time All-Star who made 442 appearances in eight years with the Royals, with a 2.75 ERA and 10.6 WAR. he became the full-time closer in 2017 and had 26 saves, eighth-most in the league. Herrera was sensational in the post-season, pitching 28 ²⁄₃ innings across 2014 and 2015, and giving up just four earned runs with 38 strikeouts, for an ERA of 1.26.

#6 Mike Moustakas vs. #11 Greg Holland

Moustakas overcame some early career struggles to become of the best power-hitting third basemen in the league. He was a two-time All-Star with the Royals,a nd his best season came in 2017, when he hit .273/.314/.521 with 38 home runs, good for fifth in the league, and setting at the time a single-season club record. It was his first year back after missing much of the previous season with a knee injury, and he won AL Comeback Player of the Year, and even earned some MVP votes. Moose had some clutch moments in the post-season such a home run in Game 5 of the 2015 ALCS against Toronto, and an amazing catch over the dugout in the 2014 ALCS against Baltimore.

Greg Holland was known as one of the filthiest closers in baseball with a devastating slider. In six season with the Royals, he collected 145 saves with a 2.42 ERA in 319 ²⁄₃ innings. He was a two-time All-Star, and earned Cy Young and MVP votes in both 2013 and 2014. His 1.32 ERA over those two seasons is the best out of any pitcher in baseball with at least 100 innings. In 2013 he was named AL TSN Pitcher of the Year, and in 2014 he was given the AL Rivera Reliever Award. He finished second in the league in saves in 2013 and 2014, and eighth in 2015.

Thursday: The second round of the Herzog bracket.