A look back at Royals first year players in 1982

The Royals were coming off two consecutive playoff appearances in 1982. Six position players who saw action in at least 120 games and all four starting pitchers were over 30. Since the founding of organized baseball in 1876, only 19,811 men have played at the major league level.

Steve Hammond was drafted by the California Angels in 1974 but chose to play college baseball instead. He was signed by Atlanta Braves in 1978 and sold to Kansas City Royals in 1982. Hammond made his debut on June 28th and hit .282 in his first 24 games. His last 22 games were disappointing and he was released. After playing in Omaha for two seasons, Hammond spent two more seasons in the Cubs minor league system.

Don Slaught was drafted by Milwaukee in 1979 but didn't sign. He was selected by the Royals in the 7th round in 1982. Slutter was a star at UCLA, hitting .428 in 1978. In 1985, he was traded to Texas in exchange for Jim Sundberg. He is now a catcher for the Mets. His current contract runs until 2018. The team is currently playing in Kansas City.

Sundberg was 34 when he was traded to the Royals. He helped the team win the 1985 World Series, but his slash was only .227/.305/.349. Slaught played for three seasons as a Ranger and six as Pittsburgh's catcher. In his last six seasons he played well, making 87 errors in 6,722 chances, with a fielding percentage of .987.

Ron Johnson was a product of Long Beach. He played baseball at Fresno State and the Royals. Johnson played for the KC Royals in 1982 and 1983. In 1983 he was traded to Montreal for a pitcher named Tom Dixon. After retiring he became a coach in the minor league system. His son Chris played in big league baseball for Atlanta. Ron Johnson died on January 26th, 2021 at the age of 64. He was named International League Manager of the Year in 2015. The team posted winning records in six of eight seasons. Terry Francona gave him his first big-league job in 2010 as first base coach of Red Sox.

Mark Ryal was drafted by the Royals in the 1978 draft. He played in six late-season games for Kansas City in 1982, collecting one hit. Ryel spent the next two seasons in Omaha and the White Sox system. In 1986 he was called up again and played 127 games over six seasons. His son Rusty Ryals played for the Arizona Diamondbacks. He later played 124 games in Japan for Chunichi Dragons.

Buddy Biancalana was drafted by the Royals in 1978. He played for them in 1982 and 1985. BianCalana played in the World Series in 1988. He was traded to the Houston Astros in 1987. Mel Stottlemyre Jr. played 13 games for the team in 1990. The Royals resigned him in that year. There are ten men named Buddy who have been major league baseball players. They include Bell and Bian Calana. It is the same number as the number of players named "Bryant".

Bud Black has had two baseball careers, 15 years as a player and 15 as manager. He was drafted by the Mariners in the 17th round of the 1979 draft. The Royals picked him up in March of 1982 as the Player to be named later in a trade for Manny Castillo. Black played for Kansas City from 1982 until 1988. After that he played in Cleveland and Toronto. He managed Colorado after his playing days were over.

Keith Creel was drafted by the Royals in 1980. He made his major league debut in May 1982 against the Chicago White Sox. Creels played for Kansas City and Omaha before being traded to Cleveland in 1985. His career ended after the 1987 season with a record of 5 and 14. He was a high school pitcher from Texas. The state has produced many high-school pitchers in the past.

Derek Botelho, Don Slaught, Steve Hammond and Sundberg were drafted by the Phillies, the Cubs and the Royals. Botelsho made his major league debut on July 18th, 1982. He played for the Reds, Royals and Cardinals before retiring at the age of 31. Sundburg played well for Royals in 1985. Merrifield and Manea were called up. The Royals traded Ben Zobrist for Zobert. They won the World Series in 2015. It's possible that Merfiffield and Zubrist would have been better players. If they didn't, they might have won it without them.