1985 Kansas City Royals Season
The 1985 Kansas City Royals season was the 17th season in Royals franchise history. It ended with the Royals' 1st World Series champion over their intra-state rivals, the St. Louis Cardinals. The Royals won the American League West Division for the second consecutive season and the sixth time in ten years. The team improved its record to 91–71 on the strength of its pitching, led by Bret Saberhagen's Cy Young Award-winning performance. In the postseason, the Royals went on to win the 1985 American League Championship Series for just the second time and the 1985 World Series, World Series for the first time (they previously lost the 1980 World Series). Both the ALCS and the World Series were won in seven games after the Royals lost the first two games at home and three of the first four games overall. The championship series against the Cardinals was forever remembered in St. Louis by umpires' supposedly blown calls in Game Six: one that cost the Royals a run in the 4th, and ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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American League West
The American League West is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. The division has five teams as of the 2013 season, but had four teams from 1994 to 2012, and had as many as seven teams before the 1994 realignment. Although its teams currently only reside along the West Coast of the United States, West Coast and in Texas, historically the division has had teams as far east as Chicago and Minnesota. From 1998 (when the NL West expanded to five teams) to 2012, the AL West was the only MLB division with four teams. History When MLB split into divisions for the season, the American League, unlike the National League (baseball), National League, split its 12 teams strictly on geography. The six teams located in the Eastern Time Zone were all placed in the AL East, and the remaining six were placed in the AL West. When the second incarnation of the Washington Senators announced their intention to move to the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, Dallas–Fort Worth area for the 197 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Umpire (baseball)
In baseball, the umpire is the person charged with referee, officiating the game, including beginning and ending the game, enforcing the rules of the game and the grounds, making judgment calls on plays, and handling disciplinary actions. The term is often shortened to the colloquial form ump. They are also sometimes nicknamed blue due to the traditional color of the uniform worn by umpires. Although games were often officiated by a sole umpire in the formative years of the sport, since the turn of the 20th century, officiating has been commonly divided among several umpires, who form the umpiring crew. The position is analogous to that of a referee in many other sports. Duties and positions In a game officiated by two or more umpires, the umpire in chief (usually the home plate umpire) is the umpire who is in charge of the entire game. This umpire calls strike zone, balls and strikes, calls fair balls, foul balls short of first/third base, and makes most calls concerning the ba ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Steve Balboni
Stephen Charles Balboni (; born January 16, 1957) is an American former Major League Baseball player, who played for the New York Yankees, Seattle Mariners, Kansas City Royals, and Texas Rangers. He was a player with home run power and a tendency to strike out. He was nicknamed "Bye Bye" because of his home run hitting prowess. He was also known by the nickname "Bones", which is a malapropism for Balboni. He is also known for the "Curse of the Balboni", an idea written about by Rany Jazayerli which said no baseball team with a player hitting more than 36 home runs for that team could win the World Series. Since Balboni was the last player to hit 36 home runs and win a World Series, (1985 Royals), the curse bore his name. The curse ran from 1985 until Luis Gonzalez and the Arizona Diamondbacks won the 2001 World Series. College career Born in Brockton, Massachusetts, Balboni attended Manchester Memorial High School in Manchester, New Hampshire and Eckerd College in St. Peters ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Home Run
In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error (baseball), errors being committed by the Defense (sports), defensive team. A home run is usually achieved by hitting the ball over the outfield fence between the foul poles (or hitting either foul pole) without the ball touching the Baseball field, field. Inside-the-park home runs where the batter reaches home safely while the baseball is in play on the field are infrequent. In very rare cases, a fielder attempting to catch a ball in flight may misplay it and knock it over the outfield fence, resulting in a home run. An official scorer will credit the batter with a hit (baseball), hit, a Run (baseball), run scored, and a run batted in (RBI), as well as an RBI for each Base running, runner on base. The pitcher is recorded as having given u ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Willie Wilson (baseball)
Willie James Wilson (born July 9, 1955) is an American former professional baseball player. He played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball for the Kansas City Royals, Oakland Athletics, and Chicago Cubs. He was an outfielder known for his speed and ability as an effective leadoff hitter. Wilson's career total of 668 stolen bases currently ranks him in 12th place all-time among major leaguers. Early life Wilson was born in Montgomery, Alabama, but moved to Summit, New Jersey, at seven years old. He was a highly regarded high school baseball, football, and basketball player at Summit High School. In his senior year, he hit .436 and stole 28 bases in 28 attempts. Professional career Early years Wilson was drafted out of high school after signing a letter of intent to play college football at Maryland. The Kansas City Royals picked him in the first round (18th overall) of the 1974 Major League Baseball draft. He started his professional career with the Gulf Coast Royals, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Triple (baseball)
In baseball, a triple is the act of a Batter (baseball), batter safely reaching third base after hitting the ball, with neither the benefit of a fielder's misplay (see error (baseball statistics), error) nor another baserunner, runner being put out on a fielder's choice. A triple is sometimes called a "three-bagger" or "three-base hit". For baseball statistics, statistical and baseball scorekeeping, scorekeeping purposes it is denoted by 3B. Triples have become somewhat rare in Major League Baseball, less common than both the Double (baseball), double and the home run. This is because it requires a ball to be hit solidly to a distant part of the field (ordinarily a line drive or Fly ball (baseball), fly ball near the Foul line (baseball), foul line closest to Right fielder, right field), or the ball to take an irregular bounce in the outfield, usually against the wall, away from a outfielder, fielder. It also requires the batter's team to have a good strategic reason for wanting ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Double (baseball)
In baseball, a double is the act of a batter striking the pitched ball and safely reaching second base without being called out by the umpire, without the benefit of a fielder's misplay (see error) or another runner being put out on a fielder's choice. A double is a type of hit (the others being the single, triple and home run) and is sometimes called a "two-bagger" or "two-base hit". For statistical and scorekeeping purposes it is denoted by 2B. Description Typically, a double is a well-hit ball into the outfield that finds the "gap" between the center fielder and one of the corner outfielders, bounces off the outfield wall and down into the field of play, or is hit up one of the two foul lines. To hit many doubles, a batter must have decent hitting skill and power; it also helps to run well enough to beat an outfield throw. Many of the best double hitting batters were revered for high baseball IQ and the ability to slide well and turn a single into an extra-base h ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Hit (baseball)
In baseball statistics, a hit (denoted by H), also called a base hit, is credited to a batting (baseball), batter when the batter safely reaches or passes first base after hitting the ball into fair ball, fair territory with neither the benefit of an error (baseball), error nor a fielder's choice. Scoring a hit To achieve a hit, the batter must reach first base before any fielder can either tag out, tag him with the ball, throw to another player protecting the base before the batter reaches it, or force play, tag first base while carrying the ball. The hit is scored the moment the batter reaches first base safely; if he is put out while attempting to stretch his hit to a double (baseball), double or triple (baseball), triple or home run on the same play, he still gets credit for a hit (according to the last base he reached safely on the play). If a batter reaches first base because of offensive interference by a preceding runner (including if a preceding runner is hit by a batt ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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George Brett
George Howard Brett (born May 15, 1953) is an American former professional baseball third baseman, designated hitter, and first baseman who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City Royals. Brett's 3,154 career hit (baseball), hits are second most by any third baseman in major league history (after only Adrián Beltré, Adrian Beltré's 3,166) and rank 18th all-time. He is one of five players in MLB history to accumulate 3,000 hits, 300 home runs, and a career .300 batting average (baseball), batting average (the others being Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Miguel Cabrera, and Stan Musial). He was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999 Baseball Hall of Fame balloting, 1999 in his first year of eligibility, and is the only player in MLB history to win a List of Major League Baseball batting champions, batting title in three different decades. He was also a member of the Royals' 1985 World Series victory over ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Run (baseball)
In baseball, a run is scored when a player advances around first, second and third base and returns safely to home plate, touching the bases in that order, before three outs are recorded and all obligations to reach base safely on batted balls are met or assured. A player may score by hitting a home run or by any combination of plays that puts him safely "on base" (that is, on first, second, or third) as a runner and subsequently brings him home. Once a player has scored a run, they may not attempt to score another run until their next turn to bat. The object of the game is for a team to score more runs than its opponent. The Official Baseball Rules hold that if the third out of an inning is a force out of a runner advancing to any base then, even if another baserunner crosses home plate before that force out is made, his run does not count. However, if the third out is not a force out, but a tag out, then if that other baserunner crosses home plate before that tag out i ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Baseball Statistics
Baseball statistics include a variety of metrics used to evaluate player and team performance in the sport of baseball. Because the flow of a baseball game has natural breaks to it, and player activity is characteristically distinguishable individually, the sport lends itself to easy record-keeping and compiling statistics. Baseball "stats" have been recorded since the game's earliest beginnings as a distinct sport in the middle of the nineteenth century, and as such are extensively available through the historical records of leagues such as the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players and the Negro leagues, although the consistency, standards, and calculations are often incomplete or questionable. Since the National League (baseball), National League (NL) was founded in 1876, statistics in the most elite levels of professional baseball have been kept at some level, with efforts to standardize the stats and their compilation improving during the early 20th centur ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Danny Darwin
Danny Wayne Darwin (born October 25, 1955), known as "the Bonham Bullet", is an American professional baseball pitcher and coach, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers, Milwaukee Brewers, Houston Astros, Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago White Sox, and San Francisco Giants, from through . Over his MLB career, he amassed 171 wins and 182 losses, with a 3.84 earned run average (ERA). Playing career Darwin attended Bonham High School and Grayson County College. He signed as an undrafted free agent with the Texas Rangers on May 10, 1976. He began his professional career with the Asheville Tourists in Single-A in 1976. He pitched for the Double-A Tulsa Drillers in 1977 and the Triple-A Tucson Toros in 1978. With Tulsa, he was 13–4, 2.41 ERA in 23 starts with six complete games and four shutouts. Darwin made his major league debut with the Rangers on September 8, 1978. He pitched two innings of relief in an 11–4 loss agai ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |