A Look Back at 1971

The Royals entered their third season having suffered two ninety-loss seasons with a team full of young, inexperienced players. Manager Bob Lemon had been hired fifty-two games into the 1970 season, but the team had only played marginally better in the second half of the year. He inherited a club that had a few decent pitchers, but struggled to score runs.

General Manager Cedric Tallis made sure not to panic, instead sticking to his strategy of acquiring players entering their prime years, even if it meant trading away more proven players. More often than not, those acquisitions panned out with players like Lou Piniella, Amos Otis, and Fred Patek all making major contributions after being acquired in trades.

1971 was the first season in Royals history to give fans hope. This was the season that gave Kansas Citians notice that the Royals would not be run as a joke of a franchise the way the Athletics had been run. The new franchise was building a serious organization committed to winning.

1971 in a Box:

Record: 85-76 (2nd place, 16 GB)
Runs Scored: 603 (8th in AL)
Runs Allowed: 566 (3rd in AL)
Park Factor: Batting - 99/Pitching - 99 (over 100 favors batters)

General Manager: Cedric Tallis
Manager: Bob Lemon

Attendance: 910,784 (8th in the AL) - 11,244 per game
Stadium: Municipal Stadium

Longest Winning Streak: 6 (May 28 to June 5 and June 8 to June 14)
Longest Losing Streak: 8 (July 25 to August 3)
How they started: Very even, trading wins for losses. They began 16-14 with no more than a three game win streak or three game losing streak.
Best month: August. They went 18-12 and snapped an eight game losing streak by winning eleven of their next fourteen.
Worst month: July. It was their only losing month with a very respectable 14-16 record.
Best game: August 4. The Royals hosted the Twins for a twi-night doubleheader. In Game One, Dick Drago gave up a run on three hits in the first, but threw goose eggs after that in a 2-1 Royals victory. In Game Two, Al Fitzmorris had a no-hitter going through six innings before Twins slugger Harmon Killebrew led off the seventh with a single. Fitz would end with a two hit shutout in a 3-0 Royals win.
Worst game: July 29. The Royals built a 6-1 lead against the Tigers, but starter Bill Butler, trying to come back from injury, was terrible. The Royals still clung to a 9-6 lead in the ninth, with Roger Nelson in the game, also trying to rebound from injury. Nelson and reliever Ted Abernathy managed to load the bases with two outs, leading Manager Bob Lemon to bring in Tom Burgmeier to close out the game. Burgmeier managed to hit Norm Cash, give up a single to Jim Northrup, and walk Dick McAuliffe, to tie the game with the bases still loaded. With pitcher Fred Scherman up, and the Royals just one out from getting out of the jam and heading to extra innings, Burgmeier hit the pitcher, scoring a run and winning the game for Detroit 10-9.
Loved to face: Boston. The Royals romped over the Sox, going 11-1 against a pretty decent team.
Hated to face: Oakland. The A’s dominated everyone that year, and were 13-5 against the Royals.

Say Hello To: Gail Hopkins, Fred Patek, Bruce Dal Canton, Jerry May, Carl Taylor, Bobby Knoop
Say Goodbye To: Pat Kelly, Fran Healy, Bob Johnson, Jackie Hernandez, Ellie Rodriguez, Dave Morehead, Luis Alcaraz, Tom Matchick (traded in May), Carl Taylor (traded in September)

What Went Right: This was a pitching-heavy era, but the Royals 3.25 ERA was good enough for fifth in the league. They had three starters with sub-3.00 ERA – Dick Drago, Mike Hedlund and rookie Paul Splittorff. Ted Abernathy and Tom Burgmeier were brilliant in the back of the bullpen. Veterans Paul Schaal and Cookie Rojas both had career seasons at the plate and in the field. The Royals turned a league high 178 double plays. Fred Patek, acquired in a trade from Pittsburgh, was a sparkplug on offense and finished sixth in MVP balloting. Young outfielder Amos Otis was emerging as one of the best players in the league, finishing eighth in MVP balloting. The offense didn’t hit many home runs at all, but led the league in steals with 130. Patek and Otis combined for 101 steals, the most by a duo in the AL since 1917.

What Went Wrong: Slugger Bob Oliver, who hit 27 home runs in 1970, was awful in 1971. The Royals had very little power, even for the era, finishing dead last in round-trippers. Otis was great in the outfield, but all other outfielders – Oliver, Lou Piniella, Ed Kirkpatrick, Joe Keough – were disappointing. Wally Bunker, Roger Nelson and Bill Butler, three of the best pitchers for the Royals in 1969, battled injuries all season.

Youngsters (25 or under)— 10 (youngest semi-regular was 23 year old pitcher Jim York)
Prime (26-29)—14 semi-regulars
Past-Prime (30-33)—3 semi-regulars
Old Timers (34+)— 1 (38 year old reliever Ted Abernathy was the only geezer)
Rookies: Dennis Paepke, Paul Splittorff, Jim York, Lance Clemons
Top Prospect— First baseman Frank Ortenzio hit 32 home runs and 103 RBI with a .303 average in San Jose. A young infielder in his first pro-season hit .291/.373/.419 at age 18 in Billings, Montana. His name - George Brett.
1971 Draft: Roy Branch (5th overall), George Brett, Joe Zdeb, Mark Littell, Steve Busby (Secondary Phase), John Wathan (January)

Best OPS+: Paul Schaal, 128
Most Runs Created: Paul Schaal, 95 (8th in the league)
Highest Batting Average: Amos Otis, .301 (6th in the league)
Lowest Batting Average: Ed Kirkpatrick, .219
Most Home Runs: Amos Otis, 15
Most RBI: Amos Otis, 79
Most Stolen Bases: Amos Otis, 52 (1st in the league; Patek was 2nd with 49)
Moneyball Award: Paul Schaal, 103 walks (3rd in the league)
Angel Berroa Award: Bob Oliver, 14 walks in 398 plate appearances
Best Position Player: Paul Schaal and Amos Otis
Worst Position Player: Bob Oliver

Most Wins: Dick Drago, 17
Most Losses: Dick Drago, 11
Most Saves: Ted Abernathy, 23 (2nd in the league)
Best ERA: Paul Splittorff, 2.68
Worst ERA: Jim Rooker 5.33
Most Innings: Dick Drago, 241 1/3
Best Pitcher: Dick Drago
Worst Pitcher: Jim Rooker

Career Best Seasons: Gail Hopkins, Cookie Rojas, Paul Schaal, Fred Patek, Dick Drago, Mike Hedlund, Ken Wright, Tom Burgmeier, Jim York
Career Worst Seasons: Bob Oliver, Ed Kirkpatrick, Bobby Knoop, Wally Bunker, Jim Rooker
Nicknames: Octavio “Cookie” Rojas, Fred “The Flea” Patek, Mike “Booger Red” Hedlund, Ed “Spanky” Kirkpatrick, Amos “A.O.” Otis

Running Wild: On September 7, Amos Otis stole five bases against the Milwaukee Brewers in a 4-3 win. He scored two runs and stole all five against future Royals catcher Darrell Porter. It was the most steals in a game in the Major Leagues in forty-four years.

Deadball Era: The Royals threw fifteen shutouts in 1971, but were shutout eighteen times. They lost four games that season by a 1-0 tally. In July the Royals hosted a five game series with the White Sox, gave up just five runs in the series – and lost three of the five games. There were 164 shutouts in the American League that year, compared to 27 in 2007. American League teams averaged 3.9 runs per game in 1971, a full run lower than they did in 2007.

Smarter Than the Chiefs? In the January 1971 Secondary Phase of the Amateur Draft, the Royals selected a shortstop out of the University of Mississippi named Archie Manning. Manning would go on to a thirteen year career in the National Football League as a quarterback, and would father two other pro quarterbacks, Peyton and Eli.

Full House: The Royals expanded Municipal Stadium from a capacity of 30,296 to just over 35,000 for the 1971 season. Opening day drew over 32,000, the largest crowd in Royals history. On August 3 the Royals again set a franchise attendance record as 35,232 came out to Municipal Stadium to see the Royals lose to the Athletics 7-5.


Friends and Family Only: The race was long over, but a pair of games at the very end of the season in Oakland between the first place Athletics and second place Royals drew a total of 2,600 fans combined.

Hurry Up! We Got a Plane to Catch: The Royals had just nine games take more than three hours to play, and five of those games were extra innings. They had five games that took less than two hours to play, including a game in late September that took just over an hour and a half.

Season Summary

The young Royals entered their third year of play having lost ninety games in each of their first two seasons. Their offense lacked punch as there were few good hitters in the expansion draft, and the Royals had yet to develop any hitters of their own. Two hitters they had acquired in trades, first baseman/outfielder Bob Oliver and centerfielder Amos Otis, had both excelled in 1970, and were looked on as cornerstones for the lineup in 1971. The Royals had done a fabulous job identifying cast-off pitchers from other organizations and turning them into productive staff members. Dick Drago, Jim Rooker, Bill Butler and Wally Bunker had all been taken in the expansion draft and had turned into a solid rotation for the early Royals.

During the 1970 World Series, the Royals made their first move sending speedy outfielder Pat Kelly to the White Sox for first baseman Gail Hopkins. Hopkins was a light-hitting, high contact first baseman, much in the same mold as Ross Gload. The Royals planned to use him as a top bat off the bench, and to spell first baseman Bob Oliver.

General Manager Cedric Tallis went to the December winter meetings focused on acquiring a young shortstop to anchor his team. Starter Jackie Hernandez was prone to errors, was never much with the bat and had fallen out of favor with the team. Tallis looked at a number of young shortstops, including Leo Cardenas of the Twins, Luis Alvarado of the Red Sox, and Enzo Hernandez of the Orioles. Teams wanted one of the Royals front-line starting pitchers in return for a young shortstop, and Tallis was reluctant to part with pitchers due to a rash of injuries to his rotation. He inquired about Dodgers minor leaguer Bill Russell and Yankees shortstop Gene Michael, but was rebuffed. Enzo Hernandez was soon shipped to San Diego for pitcher Pat Dobson, and Alvarado was shipped to the White Sox for Luis Aparicio, dimming the prospects for the Royals. Said Tallis, “I haven’t given up, but shortstops are a rare commodity.”

Fortunately for Tallis, the Pirates had both veteran Gene Alley and young Fred Patek at shortstop and were willing to deal one for a Royals pitcher. They offered the Royals either player, and the Royals went with the younger and healthier Patek. To acquire Patek, the Royals had to part with one of their best pitchers in 1970, Bob Johnson. Johnson had been acquired with Amos Otis for third baseman Joe Foy the prior winter, and had rewarded the Royals with eight wins and a 3.07 ERA in twenty-six starts. The Royals also gave up Jackie Hernandez and catcher Jim Campanis and received pitcher Bruce Dal Canton and catcher Jerry May, along with Patek.

Many observers thought the Royals had made out with a fine deal, acquiring a fireplug like Patek and a potential starting catcher in May for a pitcher who had only one solid season. “This is the best deal made so far at the winter meetings,” said Padres President Buzzie Bavasi. Others were not convinced.

“Despite the Royals success in trading the deal with the Pirates is both risky and controversial. Johnson has exceptional stuff and at the age of twenty-seven appears to have acquired the knowledge and experience he needs to become an exceptional Major League pitcher….Johnson could easily develop into a twenty game winner with the Pirates and there is a feeling among some elements in the American League that the Royals may have given up too much in the deal, especially since pitching was a problem with them last year.”
-Kansas City Star Sports Editor Joe McGuff

Patek would of course go on to a remarkable nine year career with the Royals with three All-Star seasons, while Johnson would win twenty games….over the course of the rest of his career.

Tallis continued to shore up the roster by acquiring backup catcher Carl Taylor for expendable starting catcher Ellie Rodriguez. He took flyers on former All-Star pitcher Billy McCool and former All-Star second baseman Bobby Knoop in separate trades and picked up former Cy Young winner Mike McCormick after his release from the Yankees, although none of those players had any impact.

The Royals went into the season confident they had a young team that could improve on their 65-97 record and possibly reach the .500 mark. They had revamped much of their lineup, but still had guys like Bob Oliver, Amos Otis, Lou Piniella, Cookie Rojas and Paul Schaal they could rely on. Newly acquired Jerry May and veteran Ed Kirkpatrick were to split catching duties. Oliver would provide power from the first base position, while Rojas and Patek formed a terrific defensive double play duo. Paul Schaal was the veteran third baseman. Otis, Piniella and Joe Keough formed the outfield. Bobby Knoop and Dennis Paepke provided the bats off the bench.

In the rotation, Dick Drago was the ace of the staff with Jim Rooker behind him. After that, the Royals had talented pitchers coming off injuries with Mike Hedlund, Wally Bunker, Roger Nelson, who would not be available until July, and Bill Butler, who would not be available until September. They also had a good swingman in Bruce Dal Canton and a promising young minor leaguer named Paul Splittorff, who was demoted on the last day of spring training. Ted Abernathy and Tom Burgmeier were set to close out ballgames, with guys like Ken Wright, Al Fitzmorris and Jim York rounding out the pitching staff.

The Royals began the season with a brilliantly pitched 4-1 complete game victory courtesy of ace Dick Drago. They suffered three straight one-run losses in April to fall to 6-9, but followed that up with a home sweep of the Indians to even their record. In May, they beat the Baltimore Orioles to snap a twenty-three game losing streak to that franchise, and even took two out of three from the mighty Birds. A week later, Bruce Dal Canton went the distance to beat the Orioles, the first time the Royals had ever won a game in Baltimore.

To end the month of May, the Royals went on a six game winning streak in Boston and New York to improve to 26-22, and pulling them into second place. On May 31, Amos Otis received a standing ovation from fans at Fenway Park after hitting a home run in each game of a doubleheader and driving in six runs in a Royals sweep. The Royals ripped off twelve wins in thirteen games including two sweeps of the third place Red Sox. Part of that win streak included the debut of minor league phenom Paul Splittorff, who responded to a call-up with a 4-2 victory, giving up just one run over 7 2/3 innings. Fans began to believe in the team and Royals Manager Bob Lemon even remarked that the team had a great chance to finish with a winning record. Oakland manager Dick Williams was also a believer, remarking “The Royals are an expansion team, but they are in the pennant picture.”

The Royals stumbled badly in June with a pair of ugly losses to the last place White Sox, then extended that into a seven game losing streak in Oakland. They dropped to eleven games back of the Athletics, although they remained in second place. Kansas City then dropped three straight one run games at home to the White Sox, including a pair of 1-0 losses. Manager Bob Lemon expressed his frustration and warned, “This can’t go on like this.”

Cookie Rojas, not listed on the All-Star ballot, enjoyed a huge write-in campaign and was voted in to join Amos Otis at the All-Star game. The Royals righted the ship after the break, winning nine out of twelve, including three wins by Drago. On July 9, Fred Patek broke a 3-3 tie in the ninth with a two run home run to go along with his single, double and triple. Freddie “the Flea”, who stood at five foot five, was the first Royals player to ever hit for the cycle.

“The Little Man makes a big difference. He can do a lot of things.”
-Royals Manager Bob Lemon

The Royals dropped eight in a row at the end of July, including five straight one run games, falling to .500. but followed that up by winning eleven out of fourteen. By now Splittorff was an integral part of the rotation along with young rookie Ken Wright. The Royals were fortunate to have such depth as recurring injuries caught up to Butler, Bunker and Nelson. Mike Hedlund was able to rebound from injury and enjoy one of his finest season, winning seven of eight starts in late August and September.

By late August the Royals had already set a franchise record for most victories. Oakland clinched the division in early September, but the Royals still played hard and finished with an 85-76 record, best in Kansas City Major League history.

“I can see the difference in this club. This year the club has a winning attitude – everyone thinks we can win.”
-Royals rookie pitcher Paul Splittorff

The Royals deservedly received many accolades for their finish in 1971. General Manager Cedric Tallis had insisted his team develop around young players, and his efforts had paid off. Tallis had insisted that the Royals be allowed to participate in the 1968 Amateur draft, a year before the team would begin play, even though the other expansion franchises did not wish to participate. In that draft, he took young left-handed pitcher Paul Splittorff, and Splittorff paid off with a 2.68 ERA and a 8-9 record in twenty-two starts, finishing fifth in Rookie of the Year balloting. For his work Tallis was named Sporting News Executive of the Year.

The Patek deal, deemed controversial by some at the time, was a huge success. Patek, as well as teammate Amos Otis, both finished in the top ten in MVP balloting. Patek hit a career best .267, and manager Bob Lemon unleashed him on the basepaths, allowing him to swipe forty-nine bases, second in the league only to Otis who swiped fifty-two. Cookie Rojas hit .300 for just the second time in his career, committed just five errors all season and finished fourteenth in MVP balloting. Paul Schaal finished in the top five in the league in doubles, triples and walks. Amos Otis hit .300 for the first time in his career, hit a team high fifteen home runs and seventy-nine RBI and won his first Gold Glove.

Dick Drago finished fifth in Cy Young balloting with seventeen victories and a 2.98 ERA, and was named Royals Pitcher of the Year. Hedlund chipped in with fifteen wins and a 2.71 ERA. Bruce Dal Canton proved to be a valuable arm, winning eight games in twenty-two starts. Ted Abernathy and Tom Burgmeier combined for forty saves, with both finishing in the top five in the league.

Since their inception, the Royals had stressed building with young players. Owner Ewing Kauffman had invested heavily into scouting and minor league operations and the hard work of his scouting department, including young men like John Schuerholz and Lou Gorman, were beginning to pay off. They may or may not have known it at the time, but those men were developing the building blocks of a pennant winner, a team Kansas City could truly be proud of.

1971 Starting Lineup  AVG  OBA  SLG  HR  BI OPS+ RC
C  Jerry May         .252 .239 .344   1  24  92  25
Threw out 42% of basestealers
1B Gail Hopkins      .278 .364 .431   9  47 126  47
Had a Masters in Religion, and was working on a PhD in biochemistry
2B Cookie Rojas      .300 .357 .406   6  59  66  47
14th in MVP balloting, just 2nd .300 season in his career
3B Paul Schaal       .274 .387 .412  11  63 128  95
Drew 103 walks, 33 more than his best season ever
SS Fred Patek        .267 .323 .371   6  36  97  75
Led the league with 11 triples
LF Lou Piniella      .279 .311 .368   3  51  93  49
Hit .317 against lefties
CF Amos Otis         .301 .345 .443  15  79 124  87
At that point in his career, he was 86-100 in stolen base attempts
RF Joe Keough        .248 .316 .325   3  30  83  34
Caught stealing in all six attempts
Bench                 AVG  OBA  SLG  HR  BI OPS+ RC
C/OF Ed Kirkpatrick  .219 .308 .332   9  46  83  37
Also played all three outfield positions
C  Dennis Paepke     .204 .242 .283   2  14  49   9
Hit .278 at home
1B/RF Bob Oliver     .244 .277 .351   8  52  78  34
Hit five of his eight home runs against the first place A's
1B Chuck Harrison    .217 .266 .287   2  21  58  12
Hit .344 in August
2B Bobby Knoop       .205 .270 .286   1  11  59  12
Hit .313 with six of his eleven RBI coming against the first place A's

1971 Pitching Staff   W-L   ERA  G GS  IP    SO ERA+ 
SP Dick Drago        17-11 2.98 35 34 241.1 109 115
2.34 ERA at home
SP Mike Hedlund      15-8  2.71 32 30 205.2  76 127
Won seven of eight starts in late August and September
SP Paul Splittorff    8-9  2.68 22 22 144.1  80 128
Gave up just six runs total in his eight wins
SP Bruce Dal Canton   8-6  3.44 25 22 141.1  58 100
Tied a team record with wins in four straight starts
SP Ken Wright         3-6  3.69 21 12  78    56  93
0.98 ERA on the road, 6.10 at home

Bullpen               W-L   ERA  G GS  IP    SO ERA+
CL Ted Abernathy      4-6  2.56 63  0  81    55 134
Became the 33rd pitcher to reach 600 games that year
RP Tom Burgmeier      9-7  1.73 67  0  88.1  44 198
17 saves were second on the team, but fourth in the league
RP Jim York           5-5  2.98 53  0  93.1 103 119
Second on team in strikeouts
RP Al Fitzmorris      7-5  4.17 36 15 127.1  53  82
3.41 ERA as a reliever
RP Jim Rooker         2-7  5.33 20  7  54    31  64
3.43 ERA after a horrendous April
RP Bill Butler        1-2  3.45 14  6  44.1  32  99
Battled elbow injuries all season
RP Roger Nelson       0-1  5.29 13  1  34    29  65
Battled shoulder injuries all season