End of Era: Remembering the Lifelong memories

As we slide into 2018, there’s no better time to look back at the Kansas City Royals Golden Age.

“Don’t cry because its over, smile because it happened.” – Dr. Suess.

Yep.

But, there were plenty of tears at the K on October 1, as a core said goodbye and an era ended. Now, to quote Doc Holliday, they’ll walk out of our lives, forever. While it is possible that a guy or two of the departing core (Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, Lorenzo Cain, Jason Vargas, Alcides Escobar) return, it won’t be the same, and the “window” is shut. Certainly, you can argue it was closed before this season even started. We debated it back in December 2016. But the core made a run at it – overcoming a horrendous April and 10-20 start to peak at 7-games above .500 (55-48) thanks to a 45-28 stretch, heading into the trade deadline on July 31. It was good enough to place them as the No. 2 Wild Card and just two games behind the division-leading Indians. We know how the story unfolded, as they finished the season’s final 59 games with a 25-34 record.

“We fell short,” Hosmer said back in October. “We’re not going where we want to go, but it’s not due to lack of effort.”

In 2016, the Royals limped to the finish line, getting swept at home by the playoff-bound Indians to finish right at .500 for the first time in franchise history. Fast forward to 2017, they needed to sweep playoff-bound Arizona to finish the season 81-81. This group produced four straight non-losing seasons – the second best stretch in franchise history (six straight winning seasons – 1975-80). The Royals had a chance to pull within one-half game of the Minnesota Twins for the second Wild Card on Sept. 7 in the first game of a four-game series, when Kelvin Herrera blew the save. When the series ended, they stood still 2.5 games out with 23 games remaining. With two weeks remaining, they were 3.5 games out, but it was more of less over before they were officially eliminated on September 26 (despite a 2-1 win). It marked the fifth straight season the Royals entered the final week of the regular season with something to play for – the only MLB team over that period to either:

• make the postseason or
• were not eliminated entering the final week.

All that was left to play for, was the core suiting up and going out there, together, a few more times for each other and for the fans that they built a special bond with unlike no other group before it had done in this city.

Since winning the World Series, the Royals went 161-163. There’s a multitude of reasons why they were not better over the last two years, but that’s a story for another day. Today, as we slide into 2018, we will celebrate and remember this ride – one that produced life long memories.

Sept 23, 2011: In the midst of another dismal season, rookies Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas and Salvador Perez, along with Alcides Escobar and September call-up Lorenzo Cain, were in the starting lineup together for the first time. Melky Cabrera, his first time as a Royal, was also in the lineup that night, in what was a career year (.305/.339/.470 with career-highs in HR (18), RBI (87) and SB (20)) in one of many Dayton Moore reclamation projects. The Royals went out and scored 11 runs and pounded out 18 hits. They lost the next night, but this felt different than a bad team winning meaningless games in September. Earlier in the month, the Royals won seven in a row. And it felt like something special was brewing. The Royals finished the month with a 15-10 record – their first winning month since April of the same season.

Before going forward, we have to back track to Aug. 10, 2011 when Salvador Perez made his MLB debut. And, what a debut it was, where he ironically got his first MLB RBI and hit off Wade Davis and (not shown in video) picked two guys off:

July 17, 2012: While not part of this core, this moment stands out like yesterday. Billy Butler hit a 430-foot, 9th inning, game-tying HR:

Some other nuggets from this game:

• Alex Gordon walked five times, still a career-best and Royals record
• Yuni Bomber Betancourt had two extra-inning go-ahead hits, including a 2-run HR in the 15th.

Butler was here for the 2014 World Series, went to Oakland, and was out of baseball this season. He has 11,667,667 reasons why he is/was OK.

July 10, 2012: Boo Cano.

December 10, 2012: The Wade Davis trade. What was once labeled as the James Shields trade, it signified that the Royals and Dayton Moore were serious about winning. Moore parlayed one of the pieces from the Zack Greinke trade (which also brought Escobar and Cain), Jake Odorizzi, for Shields, who brought a winning attitude and “taught” the youngsters how to win, and the cyborg Davis. Wil Myers, the AL Rookie of the Year in 2013, was also dealt with Mike Montgomery and 3B Patrick Leonard. Leonard still hasn’t debuted. Montgomery has been dealt two more times and Myers an additional time.

May 31-June 1, 2013: Jeff Francouer hits a game-tying homer in the ninth inning in St. Louis, and Eric Hosmer hit a go-ahead double in the 3-run inning before the heavens opened up, then waited out a 5-hour rain dealy and the slowest grounds crew on Earth to finally end their 8-game losing streak with a 1-2-3 Greg Holland inning at 3:14 AM.

The Royals had bases loaded, none out when the delay began, and managed not to score.

This was also Royals GOAT George Brett’s first game as interim hitting coach.

Jeremy Guthrie, starting pitcher and member of St. Louis grounds crew:

July 18, 2013: Dayton Moore said, as the Royals head into the All-Star Break with a losing record, “There’s no reason this team can’t go on a run where they win 15 of 20.” We all mocked him. But, son of a gun, if they didn’t respond with a 17-4 stretch through August 10. It was the first time in a decade that Royals fans hadn’t switched over to football season, yet. They set one-half game behind second place Cleveland…in August. They went 26-23 the rest of the season, finishing 86-76 – their first winning record since 2003. They were not officially eliminated from playoff contention until the final week of the season, but were ultimately done in by an 8-20 May, culminated by a Yosted moment on May 6, when the Royals were in first place. It was the end of the eighth inning at Kauffman Stadium, the Royals were clinging to a 1-0 lead behind a Big Game James Shields 2-hitter in a pitching duel against White Sox ace Chris Sale. The Royals were three outs away of a 3-game sweep. In a bizarre move, with Shields at 101 pitches and cruising along, Yost calls on closer Greg Holland to nail the door shut. Five baserunners later, the save was blown and the Royals lost it in the 10th when Jordan f***ing Danks hit his second career HR batting in Adam Dunn’s spot in the lineup. The loss spiraled the Royals into a 4-19 stretch, including an 8-game losing streak which ended in the marathon at Busch Stadium. They went 60-46 the rest of the season, with a winning record in every month.

September 17, 2013: Yordano Ventura’s MLB debut. Trailing the Indians by 2.5 games with 12 games left on the schedule, Ventura’s line was: 5.2 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K and 50 pitches at 95 mph or higher. He left to a 3-1 lead, but the Royals lost, and fell 3.5 games back with 11 games remaining (sound familiar?).

September 18, 2013: Alcides Escobar avoids tag in a run down to steal home:

September 22, 2013: In the home finale of 2013, against, none other than Joakim Soria, Jason Maxwell, who hit .268/.351/.505 with 5 HR and 17 RBI in 35 games after coming over at the trade deadline, went out and did this:

EPIC.

The Royals entered the final week of the season four games back of Wild Card-leading Tampa Bay and 3.5 back of No. 2 Wild Card Cleveland. The were officially eliminated three nights later.

“That was the coolest thing I’ve seen since I’ve been here,” Alex Gordon said of the Maxwell DONG.

They were just getting started.

December 2, 2013: Chris Getz released

Getz, who, for the longest time, embodied everything that was wrong with the Royals. This was another turning of the tide, of sorts, for the organization.

April 22, 2014: Alcides Escobar made a ton of “Oh My God” defensive plays as a Royal, but this is the most memorable to me. Escobar, positioned directly behind second base as the Royals shifted Jason Giambi, did this:

June 18, 2014: A 10-game winning streak, including a 4-game sweep of the team they passed, the Detroit Tigers, propelled the Royals into first place. It was the longest winning streak in 20 years, and a team that was once 24-28, sat at 39-32. It was the first time the Royals were in first place at the 71-game mark since 1980 and this late into the season since 2003. The streak started on the “Reyes Rally.” Two outs, top of the ninth inning, Royals trailing 6-5 in Toronto, Perez hits a grounder to the shortstop Jose Reyes. He throws wild and the brutal glove of Edwin Encarnacion could not dig the throw and the Royals tie the game on the error. The Royals went on to win in 10.

It was the start of things to come for the Royals. When the opponent made a crucial mistake, they pounced.

Three days later, however, they were back in second place and were 42-39 at the halfway mark.

July 22, 2014: The Raul Ibanez speech. Back below .500 at 48-50 and 8 games back of AL Central leading Detroit and jsut three weeks into his second stint as a Royal, albeit brief in what would be his final MLB season, the 42-year old called a players only meeting in the visiting weight room in Chicago.

“I just gave my honest observations,” Ibanez said, “and told them about the potential and talent they had. The talent here is so incredible. They just need to believe that. So I told them that looking in from the outside, every team hated to play them. Everyone saw the talent they had. This was their opportunity. They were on the cusp of greatness. I just thought they needed a belief.”

The Royals responded with a 31-13 record over the next 44 games – the best record in

MLB during that stretch.

“It’s no coincidence it all started with Raul,” Alex Gordon said. “We were kind of in the dumps. We had just been swept coming out of the All-Star break. Things weren’t looking good.

“We came out of that meeting feeling so much different about yourselves.”

They were on top of the AL Central Standings at 79-63.

“I just know we wouldn’t be in the position we are today without him,” Jarrod Dyson said.

“We were on a downhill track. We needed to believe in ourselves again. He gave us that confidence we were missing. And it stayed,” James Shields said.

July 24, 2014: Mike Moustakas hits a game-tying “Little League” inside the park HR (double and an error) off Corey Kulber

Royals went on to win 2-1 in 14.

August 11, 2014: Jarrod Dyson celebrates recording the final out in a 3-2 win:

It put the Royals into first place! On that same night, superfan Sung Woo Lee, visiting from South Korea, gave us this moment:

Look at that beautiful bastard!

August 26, 2014: Alex Gordon hits a walk-off 2-run GorDONG to give the Royals a 2-1 win, maintaining a 1.5-game AL Central lead:

September 27, 2014: Royals wipe away 29 years of playoff drought, clinching a playoff spot in front of a large Royals contingent in Chicago:

The fun was just getting started.

Three nights later, one night after an epic Monday Night Football win at Arrowhead against New England – a 41-14 win that saw a benching of Tom Brady, the Royals won the AL Wild Card game with an improbable rally and extra-inning win. In that game, we have the obvious forever memories:

ALL. THE. FEELS.

Dyson revving it up!

2014 ALDS: The extra-inning HR’s in Anaheim that helped the Royals take a commanding 2-0 lead in the Best of 5.

• First, in Game 1, it was this Mike Moustakas homer in the 11th won Game 1

• Hosmer’s 11th inning DONG was the eventual game-winner in Game 2:

Angels fans:

Speaking or revving up…Billy Butler shocked the world and stole a base in the Game 3 blowout.

Also, in this series was amazing Lorenzo Cain defense – his coming out party to the rest of the nation…he was no longer a secret known only by Royals fans:

In Game 1, he also shined:

And, Vargy’s reaction was classic:

Basically:

And, then, there’s Nori Aoki:

I miss that dude. Just for fun, here’s some more fun Nori moments:

Fast forward to the ALDS, and thanks to our “friends” at Orioles Hangout, the phrase “one cyborg after another” was born.

It was after Game 2, that Guthrie, who would take the mound in Game 3, displayed his troll game with his beautiful t-shirt:

Jarrod Dyson had some things to day, as well:

He wasn’t wrong.

October 14, 2014: Mike Moustakas falls into the dugout suite for this amazing catch:

October 15, 2014: Royals sweep the Orioles to advance to their first World Series in 29 years. An 8-0 start to the postseason.

October 22, 2014: In Game 2 of the World Series, Omar Infante hit a 2-run HR, and Salvador Perez has words with Hunter Strickland, clearing the benches. It ended up in as an easy win (7-2) for the Royals. Strickland eventually got his three seasons later, when Bryce Harper, who hit one of the FIVE homers Strickland allowed in the 2014 postseason, charged the mound.

October 28, 2014: With the season on the line, 23-year old rookie Yordano Ventura – honoring the late Oscar Tavares (a sad foreshadow), dominates the Giants to send the Royals to Game 7:

This will always go down as my favorite Ventura moment:

The Royals threw up a 7-spot in the 2nd inning in the 10-0 win.

April 12, 2015: The Royals open the season 7-0. Rookie and soon-to-be fan favorite Paulo Orlando went 2-5 with two triples in the game, becoming the first player in MLB history to record triples as his first three hits:

April 19, 2015: The A’s came to town and played one of the most eventful April series you’ll find in baseball. From mega-douche Brett Lawrie’s slide into Alcides Escobar, to Ventura getting redemption, to multiple beanings and ejections, it was quite the series.

April 26, 2015: In one of the best catches I’ve ever seen, Alex Gordon goes balls to the wall into the White Sox crowd to make this epic catch:

May 20, 2015: Again, Alex Gordon does Alex Gordon things chasing a ball down and crashing into the left field wall. OMG…WADE DAVIS SMILES!

https://vine.co/v/eA96htlM2zu/embed/simple

June 15, 2015: Royals fans make a mockery of the All-Star balloting with 8 Royals leading the ballot…including a woeful Omar Infante, who was on the verge of getting cut, leading to a fun #VoteOmar Twitter campaign. It all worked out in the end, though.

July 7, 2015: In the first game of a day-night double header sweep, Paulo Orlando, caps off a 4-run ninth inning rally with a walk-off grand slam off Brad Boxberger after Greg Holland blew the save in the top half of the inning:

It was Orlando’s first game back after being demoted to Omaha back in May.

July 9, 2015: Jarrod Dyson, filling in for the just-injured Alex Gordon, does his best Gordon impression with an amazing Willie Mays-style over the shoulder catch turned into a double play in the Royals 8-3 win, capping off a 4-game sweep:

The night before, after entering the game following Gordon’s injury, he did this:

Gordon’s injury came as he was chasing Logan Forsythe’s inside-the-park homer. It was the first time there were two in one game since May 26, 1997.

In the fourth inning of the game, when Dyson entered, he was immediately tested and threw out a runner at the plate.

July 2015: Dayton Moore went all in, getting Johnny Cueto and Ben Zobrist, in exchange for five minor league pitchers, including four lefties – because prospects come and go, flags fly forever.

July 28, 2015: Cleveland Indians catcher, Roberto Perez, hits a ground ball up the middle which is cut off by Omar Infante. Infante glove flips to Alcides Escobar who makes a barehanded catch and throw to Eric Hosmer for the out!

September 12, 2015: Mike Moustakas homers twice, including his second career grand slma, and drives in a franchise-record nine runs in a wild 14-6 road win in Baltimore.

The night before, the Royals allowed a TWO grand slam, 10-run eighth inning.

September 15, 2015: We get multiple fun things. A Royals 2-0 win. Alex Rios hits a fifth inning home run in Cleveland, and the stadium fireworks operator turns on the show. He feels shame. Later in the game, a foul ball carries into the first few rows of seats off the left side of the infield and a fan isn’t quite ready. “Is that a dome shot? Ohhhh my! …”Uncle Fester!” – Hud

Speaking of Hudler, lets back track for one moment back May 13, 2014 when he referred to the Moon as a planet:

September 20, 2015: Just eight days after Moose sets Royals the single-game RBI franchise-record, Kendrys Morales has himself a day in Detroit and set a Royals record of his own with 15 totals bases – belting three solo homers and legging out a rare triple (he hit two that year, his only two since 2012):

September 24, 2015: Royals win their first division title in 30 years:

“It’s a bear suit, Joel.”

September 25, 2015: Ned Yost rolled out this “Division Title Hangover” lineup:

CF Jarrod Dyson

2B Ben Zobrist

RF Alex Rios

LF Paulo Orlando

DH Jonny Gomes

3B Cheslor Cuthbert

SS Christian Colon (this, in fact, is the last game that Alcides Escobar has not started)

1B Drew Butera

C Francisco Pena

Of course, the Royals lost 6-0, but who cared?

October 12, 2015: Facing elimination in the ALDS in Houston, Royals pieced together an epic rally to force Game 5. Top of the 8th, down 6-2, the Royals sent 11 to the plate and 40 minutes and 53 pitches later, they’d scored five runs to take the lead. They had tied the game before the Astros had recorded an out. ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME? Eric Hosmer added a mammoth 442-foot homer in the ninth for good measure.

The governor’s tweet, though:

October 14, 2015: Johnny Cueto pitches the Royals into the ALCS with a masterful effort (8 IP, 2 ER, 2 H, 8 K), retiring the final 19 batters faced after a 2-run HR by Luis Valbuena to become the first AL pitcher to retire the last 19 batters he faced since Don Larsen in the 1956 World Series. It was the longest outing by a Royals pitcher in a postseason game since Bret Saberhagen’s complete game shutout in Game 7 of the 1985 World Series (foreshadowing).

The game was still in doubt in the bottom of the eighth inning, when Kendrys Morales – facing Astros ace Dallas Keuchel in relief, gave us this iconic moment:

Notice the neck chop at the end, a direct shot at Lance McCullers’ gesture from Game 4. Royals players were not amused, as you can see here.

October 17, 2015: The Royals did what they did best in the 2014-2015 run – rallied with a big inning, out of nowhere. This one all started with winless in the playoffs David Price taking a shutout into the seventh inning. Then…

Goins and Bautista misplay the bloop into right field – folklore has it that it was the yell of a Royals fan calling for it is why Goins peeled off the ball – the Royals found like. The result a 5-run inning,

October 24, 2015: ALCS Game 6 – Wade Davis got the final five outs, but waited out over an hour rain delay in between innings. Russell Martin off the ninth with a soft single to center field. Pinch-runner Dalton Pompey stole second and third base ahead of a walk to Kevin Pillar. First and third, nobody out. Was a rain delay the only thing that can stop the Wade Davis Experience?

“As long as I felt loose,” said Davis, who did not throw any warm-up pitches during the delay. “I felt I was coming back out, especially after we scored.”

He then struck out pinch-hitter Dioner Navarro. Pillar stole second on the strikeout. Davis then struck out Ben Revere after getting a questionable 2-1 strike call. Revere proceeded to take it out on the dugout trash can.

Due up: MVP Josh Donaldson. George Brett had to check his pulse. On a 2-1 count, Davis got Donaldson to bounce one to third, where Moose, who also ended the 2014 ALCS, at home, on a ball to third, gathered and threw to Hosmer to send the Royals to their second straight World Series.

Relive it here:

“That’s so tough to do,” Moustakas said. “For Wade to come back and do that after a delay, unreal.”

The Royals took the lead in the bottom of the eighth on this memorable play:

LoCain scores all the way from first!

Yordano Ventura drops an all time great. He is very understandably excited about returning to the World Series and he sings it out:

October 27, 2015: World Series Game 1 – Alcides Escobar leads off with a fly ball that deflects off Yoenis Cespedes, resulting in a leadoff inside-the-park homer:

Yoenis Cespedes, Gold Glover…*rolls eyes*

It was the first inside the park HR hit in the World Series since Mule Haas (1929).

In response to Escobar’s “ambush hitting,” Noah Syndegarrd, who said he had “a few tricks up his sleeve,” revealed his trick by delivering this message to Esky:

In postgame, the Royals clubhouse was, as expected, NOT happy:

Moose, though:

“If anybody’s got a problem with me throwing inside they can meet me at 60 feet, 6 inches away,” “Thor” said after the game.

They did, and…

Back to Game 1, fast forward back to the bottom of the ninth inning, where the Royals faced a 4-3 deficit. Cue Alex Gordon, who gave us this EASILY Top 5 moment in Kauffman Stadium history, tying the game and breaking Familia, who was one of the best closers in baseball before this series:

ALEX F GORDON!

October 28, 2015: Johnny Cueto throws a 122-pitch complete game 2-hitter, including retiring the final 15 batters faced in the Royals Game 2 7-1 win to give them a 2-0 World Series lead. It was the first CG from an AL pitcher in the World Series in 24 years (Jack Morris):

It was his second 2-hitter of the 2015 postseason (Game 5 ALDS in 8 IP).

This is why the Royals acquired Cueto: WIN PLAYOFF GAMES. Nothing he did in the regular season, mattered (although he did clinch the division and home field advantage).

October 31, 2015: Daniel Murphy’s All Hallows Eve error led to a nightmare for the Mets, as Royals did what they did best and immediately took advantage:

November 1, 2015: Matt Harvey talks Terry Collins into going back out for the ninth inning, to try and finish what he started and send the World Series to Game 6. Wrong Move.

Still one of the pics I’ll always remember – the Mets fans reaction to Hosmer scoring the tying run:

“I let my heart get in the way of my gut,” Collins said after the game. “It’s my fault.”

The result? 2015 World Champions for the Royals – and, they did it in the most Royals fashion – coming from behind, late, again. But, should we even be surprised? They have done it all year. Pretty fitting that in the year of Yogi Bera’s death, the Royals are the most, “it ain’t over till its over” team…EVER

November baseball, ain’t it something?

November 3, 2015: Jonny Gomes, who was in Kansas City for September and wasn’t even on the playoff roster, gave us this beauty:

April 3, 2016: 2016 Opening Night, where the Royals opened against the Mets on Sunday Night Baseball. After celebrating a World Championship on their field, the Mets had the luxury of watching the Royals their championship flag and then the ring ceremony on April 5, 2016.

That had to be tough.

May 28, 2016: Down six in the bottom of the ninth, Royals batters saw 51 pitches, sent 12 batters to the plate, and scored SEVEN runs in coming back and winning, 8-7, marking the first time in franchise history they came back and won after being down by six or more runs entering the ninth. How improbable was the comeback win? Dating back to 2010, it was only the fifth time in 2,818 games that a team has won when trailing by six runs entering the bottom of the ninth. In other words, they won 0.001% of the time – or the same chance ESPN gave the Royals of winning when the inning started.

Sox closer David Robertson came in to “get some work in” and instead, got worked. He struck out Paulo Orlando to start the inning then

• Cuthbert single
• Brett Eibner double
• Omar Infante walk
• Alcides Escobar walk (7-2)
• Whit Merrifield single (7-4)
• Lorenzo Cain 6-4 fielders choice (7-5)
• Hosmer double

And, Robertson was done. Enter Tommy Kahnle. Due up, Perez’s spot in the order and Drew Butera, who produced a game-tying double. It was only Butera’s fifth hit of the season, but fourth double. Two intentional walks later, Eibner up. On a full count and after fouling off three pitches, he singled just beyond Jose Abreu at first base. Ballgame. WOW.

July 12, 2016: Eric Hosmer and Salvador Perez both homer in the second inning of the All-Star Game off old friend Johnny Cueto:

They became the first teammates to homer in the same All-Star game since Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz in 2004. The duo drove in two runs each, accounting for all four runs in the AL’s 4-2 win. Hosmer, in his first (and so far only) All-Star Game, was named MVP:

July 18, 2016: Jarrod Dyson hammers a grand slam down the RF line:

August 1, 2016: Danny Duffy throws a 1-hitter, in what could be argued as the best start in franchise history (8 IP, 1 H, 16 K, 1 BB, 95 Game Score – the fourth-best start of 2016 using that metric).

August 1, 2016: Danny Duffy throws a 1-hitter in what is arguably the best start in franchise history (8 IP, 1 H, 16 K, 1 BB, 95 Game Score – the fourth-best start of 2016 using that metric). In his next start, he threw his first career complete game, needing just 98 pitches thanks to high efficiency (72% strike rate), allowing just one run with six strikeouts compared to no walks in a 2-1 win, making him the AL leader in ERA (2.73), win percentage (.909) and WHIP (0.98). He ranked eighth in strikeouts despite making 15 appearances out of the bullpen – thanks to leading the league in strikeouts since June 1. He had tossed eight innings in a start just once before 2016, then did it four times in 6.5 weeks. On August 12, he tossed 7.2 innings of 1-run (HR), 3-hit baseball in a 6-1 win – an 8th win in the last 10 games – inching the Royals closer to .500 (59-60) as they made a move to get back into the race. They peaked at 69-62 after dipping at 51-58. A 20-7 August followed, including an 18-4 stretch after the acquisition of the “Rally Mantis.”

a 7-19 July.

At that point, since his last loss June 6, in 13 starts after, he was 9-0, the team 11-2, with a 2.43 ERA with 94 strikeouts and 0.95 WHIP in 89 innings. The Royals won his last 10 starts.

Of course, he lost his next start, and fizzled out as the season wound down, thanks to 9 HR in just 36 innings, but parlayed his dominant hot stretch into a long-term contract (5-year/$65 million).

August 25, 2016: Jarrod Dyson flashes his outfield brilliance, again:

June 21, 2017: Salvador Perez hits a go-ahead grand slam in the bottom of the 8th, helping complete a rally against the Red Sox. And, he did it with Miguel Cabrera’s bat:

It was his first career grand slam.

August 23, 2017: Old friend Greg Holland and the Rockies were in town, and Eric Hosmer had a rude welcome for his good friend, mashing a 3-run walk-off HR:

It was his first career walk-off HR.

September 4, 2017: Alex Gordon casually robs Mike Mathook of a homerun on Labor Day in Detroit:

Gordon, just a few weeks earlier ended a game in Chicago bu robbing a homer in center field:

September 15, 2017: Royals end the Indians 22-game winning streak – the second longest in MLB history. Eric Hosmer clearly says “f**k that streak.”

September 20, 2017: Breaking Balboni – Mike Moustakas sets the Royals single-season HR record:

And if you’ve wasted all this time reading all of this, you can surely give 16 more minutes to watching all 38 of his glorious DONGS:

Oct. 1, 2017: The fan reaction. What other fan base does for potential departing players?

Oh, and Hosmer matched his career-high with 25 HR in his first AB. Of course he did.

Hosmer, Moose, Escobar and Cain had their curtain call:

We don’t know what 2018 will bring for the Kansas City Royals, but we’ll always have what they gave us in 2014 and 2015, and the special bond this city had with the team.

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