Royals Player Profile

The RoyalLeaders

By Nick Kappel, Manager, Communications & Broadcasting

Photos: Jason Hanna and Amy Kontras/Kansas City Royals

Despite the team’s disappointing record, the Kansas City’s Royals’ 2019 season was highlighted by many outstanding achievements on the field.

Last season, the Royals became the first team in 41 years to have a player or players lead the American League in hits, triples and home runs. Whit Merrifield led the Majors, in fact, with 206 hits, while he, Adalberto Mondesi and Hunter Dozier tied for the Major League lead in triples (10) with Arizona’s Eduardo Escobar. Jorge Soler completed the trifecta by becoming the first Royal to lead the American League in home runs, setting the franchise’s single-season record with 48.

Soler’s 48 home runs were 10 more than the previous record set by Mike Moustakas in 2017, and were one more than Rafael Palmeiro’s 47 in 1999 and 2001 for the most in a single season in Major League history by a Cubanborn player. Twenty one of Soler’s blasts came at Kauffman Stadium, matching Chili Davis (1997) and Dean Palmer (1998) for the most homers in one season in the 47-year history of the ballpark.

For good measure, Soler also recorded a career-high 117 RBI, which were the seventh most in franchise history and the most by a Royal since 2000, when Mike Sweeney had a club-record 144 RBI and Jermaine Dye had 118. Soler’s breakout season came thanks in part to his ability to play every day. After playing in no more than 101 Major League games in a season prior to 2019, Soler joined teammate Whit Merrifield, Jonathan Villar and Marcus Semien as the only American League players to appear in all 162 games in 2019. Soler and Merrifield became the seventh and eighth Royals to play in all 162 games in a season, marking the second time in the last three seasons that the club had two players appear in all 162 games. Prior to Eric Hosmer and Alcides Escobar turning the trick in 2017, it hadn’t been done by an American League team since Seattle’s Raúl Ibañez and Ichiro Suzuki did it in 2008.

Another wHIT title For the second straight season, Whit Merrifield led the Majors in hits, finishing with a career-high 206. After leading the Majors with 192 hits in 2018, Merrifield is the

second right-handed batter to lead baseball in hits in consecutive seasons, joining Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett, who did it from 1988- 89. Merrifield is the first player, regardless of handedness, to lead the big leagues in hits in consecutive seasons since Ichiro Suzuki did it in five straight seasons from 2006-10.

Merrifield was able to reach the 200- hit plateau in part because of his uncanny consistency. He recorded a hit in a Major League-best 129 of 162 games (80.1%), three more than Kevin Seitzer’s previous club record set in 1987. Merrifield’s 129 games with a hit were the most in the Majors since Derek Jeter also hit in 129 games in 2012.

Merrifield’s season, of course, began with an 11-game hit streak. In tandem with his 20-game run to end the previous season, Merrifield’s 31-game hit streak broke George Brett’s previous franchise record of 30, set in 1980. It was the longest hitting streak in the Majors since 2011.

Merrifield started games at six different positions in 2019, and his defensive prowess keyed an important team record. The Royals committed just 73 errors last season, second fewest in the American League. It marked the third straight season that the Royals have set

the club’s single-season record for fewest errors in a 162-game season, after being charged with 79 miscues in 2017 and 77 in 2018. In doing so, the Royals became the first team in Major League history to record 80 errors or fewer in three straight 162-game seasons.

Royal Flush Kansas City’s dynamic trio of Merrifield, Soler and Adalberto Mondesi achieved feat that hadn’t been accomplished in almost 90 years. According to research by Fox Sports Kansas City’s Dave Holtzman, the 2019 Royals were the first American League team since the 1931 Yankees to have a player with at least 200 hits (Merrifield), a different player with at least 45 home runs (Soler) and another player with at least 40 steals (Mondesi). Those 1931 Yankees turned the trick with few players you may have heard of: Lou Gehrig (211 hits), Babe Ruth (46 home runs) and Ben Chapman (61 steals). Merrifield and Soler were also the first American League teammates in which one had at least 200 hits and the other had 45 home runs since Derek Jeter (206 hits) and Alex Rodriguez (54 home runs) did it with the Yankees in 2007.

Magic Mondi Despite missing 52 games over two stints on the Injured List last season, Mondesi still produced a historic season as the Royals’ shortstop. According to Sportradar, Mondesi was the first player since at least 1900 to record at least 40 stolen bases (43) and at least 10 triples (10) in fewer than 450 plate appearances (443). He was the first American League shortstop to reach that combination of steals and triples since Kansas City’s Freddie Patek (49 steals, 11 triples) in 1971.

Last season, the Royals became the first team in 41 years to have a player or players lead the American League in hits, triples and home runs.

Closing with Kennedy Veteran pitcher Ian Kennedy made the successful transition from starter to reliever last season, and tied for fourth in the American League with 30 saves. After recording just two relief appearances in the Majors prior to 2019, Kennedy became the fourth pitcher ever to record a 20-win and 30-save season, joining John Smoltz, Derek Lowe and Dennis Eckersley. (Kennedy previously won a careerbest 21 games with Arizona in 2011.) Of Kennedy’s 30 saves, 28 came between May 30 and the end of the season, two more than any other pitcher in the Majors during that time.

No Minor Feat If you’re still looking for optimism in 2020, consider that lots of young, exciting talent is on the way, courtesy of a stacked farm system. Five of Kansas City’s minor league affiliates earned postseason berths last season, and all five reached their league championship series. Burlington (R) lost in the Appalachian League Championship Series, but the Dominican Royals 1, Lexington (A), Wilmington (A+) and Idaho Falls won their respective league titles, making Kansas City the first organization to have four minor league championship-winning teams since the 2004 Cleveland Indians.

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