1989 Kansas City Royals season
Encyclopedia
The Kansas City Royals
season was a season in American baseball
. It involved the Royals finishing second in the American League West
with a record of 92 wins and 70 losses.
Kansas City Royals
The Kansas City Royals are a Major League Baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals are a member of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From 1973 to the present, the Royals have played in Kauffman Stadium...
season was a season in American baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
. It involved the Royals finishing second in the American League West
American League West
The American League West is one of three divisions in Major League Baseball's American League. The division currently has four teams, but it has had as many as seven teams before the 1994 realignment. Although its teams currently only reside along the west coast and in Texas, historically the...
with a record of 92 wins and 70 losses.
Offseason
- November 30, 1988: Bob BooneBob BooneRobert Raymond Boone is a former catcher and manager in Major League Baseball who was a four-time All-Star. Born in San Diego, California, Bob Boone is the son of a major league player, the late third baseman Ray Boone, and the father of two major leaguers: former second baseman Bret Boone and...
was signed as a free agent by the Royals. - December 6, 1988: Bill BucknerBill BucknerWilliam Joseph Buckner is a former Major League Baseball first baseman. Despite winning a batting crown in , representing the Chicago Cubs at the All-Star Game the following season and accumulating over 2,700 hits in his twenty-year career, he is best remembered for a fielding error during Game 6...
was signed as a free agent by the Royals. - December 6, 1988: Mauro Gozzo was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays from the Kansas City Royals in the 1988 minor league draft.
- March 22, 1989: Daryl SmithDaryl Smith (baseball)Daryl Clinton Smith is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. Originally drafted by the Texas Rangers in 1980, he did not make his major league debut until ten years later. He pitched two games for the Kansas City Royals in , then continued to pitch in the minor leagues in , finishing his career...
was signed as a free agent by the Royals.
Regular season
- May 15, 1989: Royals pitcher Floyd BannisterFloyd BannisterFloyd Franklin Bannister is a former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. During a 15-year baseball career, he pitched for the Houston Astros , Seattle Mariners , Chicago White Sox , Kansas City Royals , California Angels , and the Texas Rangers .-History:In 1973, as a high school...
threw exactly three pitches and recorded three outs. This was accomplished in the second inning. - June 5, 1989: Kansas City outfielder Bo JacksonBo JacksonVincent Edward "Bo" Jackson is a former American baseball and football player. He was the first athlete to be named an All-Star in two major American sports, and also won the Heisman Trophy in 1985....
made a spectacular defensive play in a game against the Seattle Mariners1989 Seattle Mariners seasonThe Seattle Mariners 1989 season was their 13th since the franchise creation, and ended the season finishing 6th in the American League West, finishing with a record of 73-89...
at the KingdomeKingdomeThe Kingdome was a multi-purpose stadium located in Seattle's SoDo neighborhood. Owned and operated by King County, the Kingdome opened in 1976 and was best known as the home stadium of the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League , the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball , and the...
. With the game tied at 3-3 in the bottom of the 10th inning and Harold ReynoldsHarold ReynoldsHarold Craig Reynolds is a former Major League Baseball second baseman. He played from 1983–1994, primarily for the Seattle Mariners.-High school:...
on first, Scott BradleyScott Bradley (baseball)Scott William Bradley is a former Major League Baseball catcher in the major leagues from to . He played for the Chicago White Sox, Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees, and Cincinnati Reds. He is currently the head coach of Princeton University's baseball team.On June 26, 1986, Bradley was traded...
lashed a double to deep left field. Reynolds, running with the pitch, thought he would easily score the winning run on the play, and was shocked when teammate Darnell ColesDarnell ColesDarnell Coles is a former Major League Baseball and Nippon Professional Baseball player who played primarily as a third baseman and outfielder from to...
instructed him to slide. Jackson fielded Bradley's double and launched a flat-footed, 300-foot throw on the fly to Royals catcher Bob BooneBob BooneRobert Raymond Boone is a former catcher and manager in Major League Baseball who was a four-time All-Star. Born in San Diego, California, Bob Boone is the son of a major league player, the late third baseman Ray Boone, and the father of two major leaguers: former second baseman Bret Boone and...
, who tagged Reynolds out at the plate. - During the season, Bret Saberhagen would be the last pitcher to win at least 20 games in one season for the Royals in the 20th Century.
- The last Royals team, to date, to win at least 90 games.
Transactions
- June 5, 1989: Brent Mayne was drafted by the Kansas City Royals in the 1st round (13th pick) of the 1989 amateur draft. Player signed June 16, 1989.
Roster
| 1989 Kansas City Royals | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roster | |||||||||
| Pitchers |
Catchers Infielders |
Outfielders |
Manager Coaches |
||||||
Player stats
| = Indicates team leader |
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 | Bob Boone Bob Boone Robert Raymond Boone is a former catcher and manager in Major League Baseball who was a four-time All-Star. Born in San Diego, California, Bob Boone is the son of a major league player, the late third baseman Ray Boone, and the father of two major leaguers: former second baseman Bret Boone and... |
131 | 405 | 111 | .274 | 1 | 43 |
| 1B | George Brett George Brett (baseball) George Howard Brett , nicknamed "Mullet", is a former Major League Baseball third baseman, designated hitter, and first baseman. He played his entire 21-year baseball career for the Kansas City Royals. Brett's 3,154 career hits are the most by any third baseman in major league history, and 15th... |
124 | 457 | 129 | .282 | 12 | 80 |
| 2B | Frank White | 135 | 418 | 107 | .256 | 2 | 36 |
| 3B | Kevin Seitzer Kevin Seitzer Kevin Lee Seitzer is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball with the Kansas City Royals, Milwaukee Brewers, Oakland Athletics, and Cleveland Indians.-Career:... |
160 | 597 | 168 | .281 | 4 | 48 |
| SS | Kurt Stillwell Kurt Stillwell Kurt Andrew Stillwell is a former Major League Baseball infielder with a 9-year career from 1986–1993, 1996... |
130 | 463 | 121 | .261 | 7 | 54 |
| LF | Bo Jackson Bo Jackson Vincent Edward "Bo" Jackson is a former American baseball and football player. He was the first athlete to be named an All-Star in two major American sports, and also won the Heisman Trophy in 1985.... |
135 | 515 | 132 | .256 | 32 | 105 |
| CF | Willie Wilson | 112 | 383 | 97 | .253 | 3 | 43 |
| RF | Danny Tartabull Danny Tartabull Danilo Tartabull Mora , also known as Danny Tartabull, is a former right fielder in Major League Baseball. Born to Cuban parents in San Juan, Puerto Rico, he is the son of José Tartabull, who played in the major leagues from 1962 to 1970.-Playing career:Danny played for the Seattle Mariners ,... |
133 | 441 | 118 | .268 | 18 | 62 |
| DH | Pat Tabler Pat Tabler Patrick Sean "Pat" Tabler is a former Major League Baseball player and currently a color analyst for the Toronto Blue Jays on the Canadian sports television network Rogers Sportsnet and formerly with Rod Black on TSN.... |
123 | 390 | 101 | .259 | 2 | 42 |
Other batters
| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jim Eisenreich Jim Eisenreich James Michael Eisenreich is an American former Major League Baseball player with a 15-year career from 1982–1984 and 1987–1998. He played for the Minnesota Twins and Kansas City Royals of the American League, and the Philadelphia Phillies, Florida Marlins and Los Angeles Dodgers of the National... |
134 | 475 | 139 | .293 | 9 | 59 |
| Brad Wellman Brad Wellman Brad Eugene Wellman was a Major League Baseball infielder.Signed by the Kansas City Royals as an amateur free agent in 1978, Wellman would make his Major League Baseball debut with the San Francisco Giants on September 4, 1982, and appear in his final game on October 1, 1989.Wellman's son, Casey... |
103 | 178 | 41 | .230 | 2 | 12 |
| Bill Buckner Bill Buckner William Joseph Buckner is a former Major League Baseball first baseman. Despite winning a batting crown in , representing the Chicago Cubs at the All-Star Game the following season and accumulating over 2,700 hits in his twenty-year career, he is best remembered for a fielding error during Game 6... |
79 | 176 | 38 | .216 | 1 | 16 |
| Mike Macfarlane Mike Macfarlane Michael Andrew Macfarlane is a former catcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Kansas City Royals , Boston Red Sox and Oakland Athletics... |
69 | 157 | 35 | .223 | 2 | 19 |
| Matt Winters Matt Winters Matthew Littleton Winters is a former major league baseball player from Buffalo, New York. He played with the Kansas City Royals, and the Nippon Ham Fighters in Nippon Professional Baseball.-Biography:... |
42 | 107 | 25 | .234 | 2 | 9 |
| Gary Thurman Gary Thurman Gary Montez Thurman is a retired Major League Baseball outfielder. He played during nine seasons at the major league level for the Kansas City Royals, Detroit Tigers, Seattle Mariners, and New York Mets. He was drafted by the Royals in the 1st round of the 1983 amateur draft... |
72 | 87 | 17 | .195 | 0 | 5 |
| Luis de los Santos Luis de los Santos Luis Manuel de los Santos Martinez is a former Major League Baseball first baseman... |
28 | 87 | 22 | .253 | 0 | 6 |
| Bill Pecota Bill Pecota William Joseph Pecota , is a former professional baseball player who played infield in the Major Leagues from 1986-94. Pecota was drafted by the Royals in the 10th round of 1981 amateur draft after playing at DeAnza College in Cupertino, CA, and debuted in Kansas City in 1986... |
65 | 83 | 17 | .205 | 3 | 5 |
| Rey Palacios Rey Palacios Robert Rey Palacios is a former Major League Baseball catcher who played for three seasons. He played for the Kansas City Royals from 1988 to 1990, playing in 101 career games. As a minor leaguer he was traded with Mark Lee from the Detroit Tigers to the Kansas City Royals for Ted Power during... |
55 | 47 | 8 | .170 | 1 | 8 |
| Jeff Schulz | 7 | 9 | 2 | .222 | 0 | 1 |
Starting pitchers
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bret Saberhagen Bret Saberhagen Bret William Saberhagen is a former Major League Baseball right-handed starting pitcher.-Early years:Bret Saberhagen attended Grover Cleveland High School, located in Reseda, California. Saberhagen starred in both basketball and baseball... |
36 | 262⅓ | 23 | 6 | 2.16 | 193 |
| Mark Gubicza Mark Gubicza Mark Steven Gubicza is a former Major League Baseball pitcher for 14 seasons for the Kansas City Royals and Anaheim Angels . He currently does color commentary for Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim games on Fox Sports... |
36 | 255 | 15 | 11 | 3.04 | 173 |
| Charlie Leibrandt Charlie Leibrandt Charles Louis "Charlie" Leibrandt, Jr. is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played from 1979 to 1993 for the Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Royals, Atlanta Braves and Texas Rangers. Leibrandt was a productive pitcher throughout his 14 year career, and a member of the 1985 World Series... |
33 | 161 | 5 | 11 | 5.14 | 73 |
| Floyd Bannister Floyd Bannister Floyd Franklin Bannister is a former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. During a 15-year baseball career, he pitched for the Houston Astros , Seattle Mariners , Chicago White Sox , Kansas City Royals , California Angels , and the Texas Rangers .-History:In 1973, as a high school... |
14 | 75⅓ | 4 | 1 | 4.66 | 35 |
Other pitchers
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steve Crawford Steve Crawford (baseball) Steven Ray Crawford is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for two teams from 1980 through 1991. Listed at 6' 5", 225 lb., he batted and threw right-handed.... |
25 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2.83 | 33 |
| Larry McWilliams Larry McWilliams Larry Dean McWilliams , is a former professional baseball player who pitched in the Major Leagues from 1978-1990. He was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 1st round of the 1974 amateur draft... |
8 | 32⅔ | 2 | 2 | 4.13 | 24 |
| Rick Luecken Rick Luecken Richard Fred Luecken is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for two seasons. He pitched in 19 games for the Kansas City Royals in 1989, 36 games for the Atlanta Braves in 1990, and one game for the Toronto Blue Jays in 1990. He was drafted out of Texas A&M in 1983... |
19 | 23⅔ | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3.42 |
| Kevin Appier Kevin Appier Robert Kevin Appier is a former right-handed Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the Kansas City Royals, Oakland Athletics, New York Mets, and Anaheim Angels.-Kansas City Royals:... |
6 | 21⅔ | 1 | 4 | 9.14 | 10 |
| Jerry Don Gleaton Jerry Don Gleaton Jerry Don Gleaton was a Major League Baseball pitcher from 1979 to 1992 for the Texas Rangers, Seattle Mariners, Chicago White Sox, Kansas City Royals, Detroit Tigers, and Pittsburgh Pirates. Became an All-American at the University of Texas and the Most Valuable Player of the Southwest Conference... |
15 | 14⅓ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5.65 |
| José DeJesús Jose DeJesus José Luis DeJesús is a right-handed batter and pitcher. He was born in Brooklyn, New York and now lives in Cidra, Puerto Rico. From 1988-1989 he only played in 5 games with a 0-1 record. He played 1990 and 1991 in Philadelphia where he went 7-8 and 10-9 respectively... |
3 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 4.50 | 2 |
| Stan Clarke Stan Clarke Stanley Martin Clarke is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball. He spent parts of six seasons in the major leagues with the Toronto Blue Jays, Seattle Mariners, Kansas City Royals, and St. Louis Cardinals.... |
2 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 15.43 | 2 |
| Bob Buchanan Bob Buchanan Robert Gordon "Bob" Buchanan is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He played during two seasons at the major league level, playing for the Cincinnati Reds and Kansas City Royals. He was drafted by the Reds in the 2nd round of the 1979 amateur draft... |
2 | 3⅓ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16.20 |
Relief pitchers
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jeff Montgomery | 63 | 7 | 3 | 18 | 1.37 | 94 |
| Tom Gordon Tom Gordon Thomas Gordon , nicknamed "Flash", is a former Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He played with the Kansas City Royals , Boston Red Sox , Chicago Cubs , Houston Astros , Chicago White Sox , New York Yankees , Philadelphia Phillies and the... |
49 | 163 | 17 | 9 | 3.64 | 153 |
| Luis Aquino Luis Aquino Luis Antonio Aquino [ah-KEE-noh] is a former middle relief pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Toronto Blue Jays , Kansas City Royals , Florida Marlins , Montreal Expos and San Francisco Giants... |
34 | 141⅓ | 6 | 8 | 3.50 | 68 |
| Terry Leach | 30 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 4.15 | 34 |
| Steve Farr Steve Farr Steven Michael Farr , is a former professional baseball player who pitched primarily as a closer in the Major Leagues from 1984-1994. Farr attended DeMatha High School outside of Washington, D.C. and then American University. He gave up Jim Thome's first home run of his career.-External links:*... |
51 | 2 | 5 | 18 | 4.12 | 56 |
Awards and honors
- Bo Jackson, All-Star Game, American League, Starting Lineup
- Bo Jackson, MLB All-Star Game MVP
- Bret Saberhagen, Cy Young Award