1969 Kansas City Royals season

March 2026 November 2013 Kansas City Royals 1969 Kansas City Royals Insignia (1969–2001).svg American League West Municipal Stadium Kansas City, Missouri 69 93 1 y 4th Ewing Kauffman Cedric Tallis Joe Gordon KMBC-TV KMBZ(Buddy Blattner, Denny Matthews) The 1969 Kansas City Royals season was the Royals' inaugural season. The team finished fourth in the newly established American League West with a record of 69 wins, 93 losses, and 1 tie. Offseason A franchise is born The club's inception is connected to the Athletics franchise. On October 18, 1967, A.L. owners at last gave Charles O. Finley permission to move the Athletics to Oakland for the 1968 season. According to some reports, Joe Cronin promised Finley that he could move the team after the 1967 season as an incentive to sign the new lease with Municipal Stadium. The move came in spite of approval by voters in Jackson County of a bond issue for a brand new baseball stadium (the eventual Kauffman Stadium) to be completed in 1973. When U.S. Senator Stuart Symington threatened to have baseball's antitrust exemption revoked, the owners responded with a hasty round of expansion. Kansas City was awarded an American League expansion team, the Royals. They were initially slated to begin play in 1971. However, Symington was not willing to have Kansas City wait three years for another team, and renewed his threat to have baseball's antitrust exemption revoked unless the teams began play in 1969. The owners complied, but it forced the Seattle Pilots to enter the league earlier than expected without a suitable stadium, leading to financial difficulty, and a rapid relocation to Milwaukee in April 1970. The Kansas City franchise was formally awarded to Ewing Kauffman on January 11, 1968.Holtzman, Jerome, "A.L. Vote to Expand Marks 1967 History," The Sporting News Official 1968 Baseball Guide and Record Book. St. Louis, Missouri: The Sporting News, 1968, pp. 175–181 The owner selected Los Angeles Angels vice president Cedric Tallis as the Royals' first general manager, and Tallis began to assemble a front office staff. Expansion draft 1968 Major League Baseball expansion draft The 1968 Major League Baseball expansion draft for the Royals and the Seattle Pilots was held on October 15. Player Former Team Pick NotesRoger NelsonRoger Nelson page at Baseball ReferenceBaltimore Orioles1stJoe FoyBoston Red Sox4thJim RookerNew York Yankees 6thJoe Keough Oakland A's8thSteve JonesWashington Senators10thJon WardenDetroit Tigers12thNever played for the Royals. Only major league experience was in 1968.Ellie RodríguezNew York Yankees 13thDave MoreheadBoston Red Sox15thMike FioreBaltimore Orioles 17thBob OliverMinnesota Twins19thBill ButlerDetroit Tigers22ndSteve WhitakerNew York Yankees23rdNever played for the Royals. Shortly before the season began, traded with John Gelnar to the Seattle Pilots for Lou Piniella.Wally BunkerWally Bunker page at Baseball ReferenceBaltimore Orioles25thPaul SchaalPaul Schaal page at Baseball ReferenceCalifornia Angels27thDan HaynesChicago White Sox29thNever played in the major leagues.Dick DragoDick Drago page at Baseball ReferenceDetroit Tigers31stPat KellyMinnesota Twins34thBilly HarrisCleveland Indians36thDon O'RileyOakland A's38thAl FitzmorrisChicago White Sox40thMoe DrabowskyBaltimore Orioles42ndJackie HernándezMinnesota Twins43rdMike HedlundCleveland Indians45thTom BurgmeierCalifornia Angels47thHoyt WilhelmHoyt Wilhelm page at Baseball ReferenceChicago White Sox 49thNever played for the Royals. Traded before the season began to the California Angels for Ed Kirkpatrick and Dennis Paepke.Jerry AdairBoston Red Sox 51stJerry CramMinnesota Twins54thFran HealyCleveland Indians56thScott Northey Chicago White Sox58thIke Brookens Washington Senators 60thNever played for the Royals. Only major league experience was with the 1975 Detroit Tigers. Other offseason transactions June 7, 1968: Dane Iorg was drafted by the Royals in the 16th round of the 1968 Major League Baseball draft, but did not sign.Dane Iorg page at Baseball Reference August 14, 1968: Galen Cisco was purchased by the Royals from the Boston Red Sox.Galen Cisco page at Baseball Reference October 16, 1968: Purchased John Gelnar from the Pittsburgh Pirates.John Gelnar Stats https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/g/gelnajo01.shtml 2024-02-28 Baseball-Reference December 12, 1968: Hoyt Wilhelm was traded by the Royals to the California Angels for Ed Kirkpatrick and Dennis Paepke. December 15, 1968: Dennis Ribant was purchased by the Royals from the Detroit Tigers.Dennis Ribant page at Baseball Reference March 29, 1969: Dennis Ribant was purchased from the Royals by the St. Louis Cardinals. 1968 MLB June amateur draft and minor league affiliates The Royals and Seattle Pilots, along with the two National League expansion teams set to debut in 1969, the Montreal Expos and San Diego Padres, were allowed to participate in the June 1968 MLB first-year player draft, although the new teams were barred from the lottery's first three rounds. Despite this impediment, the Royals drafted fifty players in the 1968 June draft, including Iorg and other future major leaguers Lance Clemons (seventh round), Monty Montgomery (ninth) and Paul Splittorff (25th).Information at Baseball Reference Splittorff would win 166 games for the MLB Royals, including seasons of 20 (1973) and 19 (1978) victories, in a 15-year big-league career, then become a longtime analyst on the team's television crew. The Royals affiliated with three minor league clubs during 1968 to develop drafted players; the rosters were filled out by professional and amateur free agents that had been signed and players loaned from other organizations. 1968 farm system A High Point-Thomasville Hi-Toms Carolina League Jack McKeon A Dubuque Royals Midwest League Max Lanier and Paul Pettit A-Short Season Corning Royals New York–Penn League Bobo Osborne LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: High Point-Thomasville Regular season May 4, 1969: Bob Oliver became the first Royal to collect six hits in a nine-inning game.https://baseballbiography.com/bob-oliver-1943 The Ballplayers - Bob Oliver | baseballbiography.com 2008-07-09 mdy-all 1969-05-31 New York Yankees vs Kansas City Royals Box Score: May 31, 1969 https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/KCA/KCA196905310.shtml 2024-02-28 Baseball-Reference en Season standings 1969 Kansas City Royals Statistics https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/KCR/1969.shtml 2024-02-28 Baseball-Reference.com en Kansas City Royals Record vs. opponents KC Notable transactions April 1, 1969: Steve Whitaker and John Gelnar were traded by the Royals to the Seattle Pilots for Lou Piniella.Royals, Pilots Swap Players https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=cfsNAAAAIBAJ&pg=6088,829836&dq St. Petersburg Times April 1, 1969 August 28, 2009 October 2026 InternetArchiveBot June 5, 1969: 1969 Major League Baseball draft Keith Marshall was drafted by the Royals in the 5th round.Keith Marshall page at Baseball Reference Frank Ortenzio was drafted by the Royals in the 47th round.Frank Ortenzio page at Baseball Reference The first game Starting lineup   9 Lou Piniella CF14 Jerry Adair 2B  8 Ed Kirkpatrick     LF  1 Joe Foy 3B  7 Chuck Harrison 1B33 Bob Oliver RF11 Ellie Rodríguez C24 Jackie Hernández    SS27 Wally Bunker     P Scorecard April 8, Municipal Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri Team123456789101112RHEMinnesota0100020000003121Kansas City1000020000014140W: Drabowsky (1–0)  L: Grzenda (0–1)  HRs: Nettles (1) Roster 1969 Kansas City Royals Roster Baseball Almanac https://www.baseball-almanac.com/teamstats/roster.php?y=1969&t=KCA 2024-02-28 www.baseball-almanac.com 1969 Kansas City Royals Roster Pitchers 27 Wally Bunker 34 Tom Burgmeier 29 Bill Butler 26 Galen Cisco 38 Jerry Cram 25 Moe Drabowsky 41 Dick Drago 42 Al Fitzmorris 32 Mike Hedlund 37 Steve Jones 17 Dave Morehead 35 Roger Nelson 23 Don O'Riley 13,22 Jim Rooker 40 Dave Wickersham 40 Chris Zachary Catchers 20 Jim Campanis 16 Fran Healy 21 Buck Martinez 28 Dennis Paepke 11 Ellie Rodríguez Infielders 14 Jerry Adair 39 Luis Alcaraz 19 Mike Fiore  1 Joe Foy 15 Billy Harris  7 Chuck Harrison 24 Jackie Hernández 12 Juan Ríos 10 Paul Schaal Outfielders 18 Pat Kelly 16 Joe Keough  8 Ed Kirkpatrick 44 Scott Northey 33 Bob Oliver  9 Lou Piniella 46 Fred Rico 30 George Spriggs 31 Hawk Taylor Manager  6 Joe Gordon Coaches  4 Harry Dunlop (3rd base)  5 Owen Friend (assistant)  3 Mel Harder (pitching) 36 Charlie Metro (1st base)  2 Jo-Jo White (hitting) Player stats = Indicates team leader Batting Starters by position Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in Pos Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI C Ellie Rodríguez 95 267 63 .236 2 20 1B Mike Fiore Mike Fiore (baseball, born 1944) 107 339 93 .274 12 35 2B Jerry Adair 126 432 108 .250 5 48 3B Joe Foy 145 519 136 .262 11 71 SS Jackie Hernández 145 504 112 .222 4 40 LF Lou Piniella 135 493 139 .282 11 68 CF Bob Oliver 118 394 100 .254 13 43 RF Pat Kelly Pat Kelly (outfielder) 112 417 110 .264 8 32 Other batters Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI Ed Kirkpatrick 120 315 81 .257 14 49 Chuck Harrison Chuck Harrison (baseball) 75 213 47 .221 3 18 Buck Martinez 72 205 47 .229 4 23 Paul Schaal 61 205 54 .263 1 13 Juan Ríos Juan Ríos (baseball) 87 196 44 .224 1 5 Joe Keough 70 166 31 .187 0 7 Hawk Taylor 64 89 24 .270 3 21 Jim Campanis 30 83 13 .157 0 5 Luis Alcaraz 22 79 20 .253 1 7 Scott Northey 20 61 16 .262 1 7 George Spriggs George Spriggs (baseball) 23 29 4 .138 0 0 Dennis Paepke 12 27 3 .111 0 0 Fred Rico 12 26 6 .231 0 2 Fran Healy Fran Healy (baseball) 6 10 4 .400 0 0 Billy Harris Billy Harris (baseball) 5 7 2 .286 0 0 Pitching Starting pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO Wally Bunker 35 222.2 12 11 3.23 130 Bill Butler Bill Butler (pitcher) 34 193.2 9 10 3.90 156 Roger Nelson Roger Nelson (baseball) 29 193.1 7 13 3.31 82 Jim Rooker 28 158.1 4 16 3.75 108 Other pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO Dick Drago 41 200.2 11 13 3.77 108 Mike Hedlund 34 125.0 3 6 3.24 74 Steve Jones Steve Jones (baseball) 20 44.2 2 3 4.23 31 Chris Zachary 8 18.1 0 1 7.85 6 Jerry Cram 5 16.2 0 1 3.24 10 Relief pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G W L SV ERA SO Moe Drabowsky 52 11 9 11 2.94 76 Dave Wickersham 34 2 3 5 3.96 27 Tom Burgmeier 31 3 1 0 4.17 23 Dave Morehead 21 2 3 0 5.73 32 Don O'Riley 18 1 1 1 6.94 10 Galen Cisco 15 1 1 1 3.63 18 Al Fitzmorris 7 1 1 2 4.22 3 Farm system Minor League Baseball AAA Omaha Royals American Association Jack McKeon AA Elmira Pioneers Eastern League Harry Bright A High Point-Thomasville Royals Carolina League Harry Malmberg A Waterloo Hawks Midwest League Rollie Hemsley A-Short Season Corning Royals New York–Penn League Buddy Peterson A-Short Season Winnipeg Goldeyes Northern League Spider Jorgensen Rookie Kingsport Royals Appalachian League Red Norwood LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Omaha Elmira affiliation shared with San Diego Padres Awards and honors 1969 Major League Baseball All-Star Game Ellie Rodríguez (reserve, did not play) 1969 AL Rookie of the Year Lou Piniella References Reichler Joseph L. The Baseball Encyclopedia: The Complete and Official Record of Major League Baseball 1985-01-01 Macmillan Publishers 9780026019309 Sixth en Category:Kansas City Royals seasons Kansas City Royals season Category:Major League Baseball inaugural teams seasons Kansas City