April 6, 1969:
AL PREVIEW: ROYALS by Joe McGuff (Kansas City Star)
Kansas City, Mo. - Charles O. Finley has faded into the West. Kansas City has served its year of exile from the American League and now the city moves into a new era of baseball with an expansion franchise and local ownership.
Kansas city's new team, known as the Royals, is owned by Ewing Kauffman, wealthy founder of Marion Laboratories, a pharmaceutical firm. Those who have gone through expansion before say Kauffman may find himself needing a line of headache remedies.
The attitude in Kansas City has been positive, however. A total of 7,300 season tickets was sold, a record for the American League. The public has accepted the idea of starting over with an expansion team and has given every indication it will support the team through its formative years.
Joe Gordon, who is returning to Kansas City after managing the A's briefly in 1961, believes the Royals will be better than most experts think. Cedric Tallis, the executive vice president, concurs in this view.
"We could make progress real fast this year," Gordon said. "If we can eliminate mistakes, we can be in a lot of games. If our players progress as we think they will and if we get help in a few positions, we could be a contender next year."
This year's version of the Royals is expected to be a scrambling team, strong on pitching and short on power. The Royals appear to have better than average speed and probably will play a running game.
Gordon believes he has three starters who can win. They are Roger Nelson, Wally Bunker and Dave Morehead. Nelson, taken from Baltimore, was the Royals' No. 1 choice in the expansion draft. Bunker, once a star with Baltimore, had arm trouble for several years, but appears to have completely recovered. Morehead, drafted from Boston, developed a shoulder injury while he was with the Red Sox, but seems sound again.
Mike Hedlund, a young righthander drafted from Cleveland, probably will be the fourth starter. Moe Drabowsky will be the No. 1 late-inning relief man. Dave Wickersham, a veteran, is expected to share the bullpen duties with him.
Mike Fiore, drafted from Baltimore, is the likely first baseman. Bob Oliver and Chuck Harrison are also possibilities. Jerry Adair, drafted froM Boston, will be at second. Jack Hernandez, take from the Twins, will be at short. Joe Foy, formerly of Boston, will be at third.
The catchers will be Ellie Rodriguez, a Yankee product, and Jimmy Campanis, purchased from the Dodgers.
Pat Kelly, a draft selection from the Twins, will play center field. He has excellent speed and appears to be a good outfielder. Joe Keough, drafted from the A's, had an outstanding spring and can play either left or right. The third outfield position remains unsettled. Among the possibilities are Lou Piniella and Ed Kirkpatrick.
The Royals' lack of power should not bother them at home, since their park is large. The distance down the left-field line is 370 feet. It is 338 feet down the right-field line. The Royals have removed the 40-foot screen Finley erected in right field, replacing it with a fence that is 13 feet high. The height of the left-field fence has been lowered from 21 to 13 feet.
If the Royals are to be competitive this year, they must get strong pitching and Hernandez must come through for them at short. They appear to be better off than the expansion teams of 1961 and 1962, but how much better off remains to be seen.
WALLY BUNKER