One Shot At Glory: The Royals' One-Time All Stars, Part 3

[Darin Watson]

Image courtesy of Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

Here it is, the final part of our series on the players who represented the Royals in the All-Star Game just once. As we look at the 2010s and 2020s, we’ll see the franchise’s return to glory. But you might be surprised how many players who were part of that are on this list.

Part One: 1969 through 1989
Part Two: 1991 through 2009

Aaron Crow (2011)

I think it’s pretty unusual for a rookie to make the All-Star team. For a rookie who is also a middle reliever? Very rare. Yet Crow did just that in his first season. The numbers were plenty good: a 2-1 record, eight holds, and a 1.40 ERA through the end of June. But the convoluted process of picking the team, with every team needing a representative, helped too. Left fielder Alex Gordon didn’t win the players’ vote for a reserve spot. None of the Royals’ starting pitchers were deserving. Closer Joakim Soria might have made a good choice on name recognition, but he struggled enough in the first half of the season that Crow was actually named as closer for about a week, although he didn’t have any save opportunities. So Crow was the pick by AL manager Ron Washington.

“Leading up to the day, and knowing every team would get one, I thought for sure it would be Alex Gordon. He’s had a great year. He’s hitting the cover off the ball, and he’s playing great in left field. Hopefully, he gets in with the fan vote because he deserves it. But for me, it probably won’t sink in until I get there, but it’s definitely a surreal feeling right now. It’s something I’ve always dreamed of.” --Crow, quoted by Bob Dutton, The Kansas City Star, July 4, 2011

Gordon did not win the fan vote, so Crow was the Royals’ only representative. Unfortunately, he did not get in the game. Even more unfortunately, his career was cut short by Tommy John surgery after the 2014 season.

Billy Butler (2012)

Apart from Bo Jackson’s MVP effort in 1989, this might be the most famous entry on this list, at least for Royals fans. With the All-Star Game being held at Kauffman Stadium for the first time since 1973, Kansas City was primed to celebrate whichever of their players made the team. While Gordon again would have been a good choice, Butler turned out to be the only Royal on the team. With a .297/.365/.516 line through the end of June, he was a deserving pick. 

“It’s going to be fun. I’m so happy that it’s going to be at our ballpark. I know that fans are going to be real happy for me. They’ve always been great to me. It’s just an awesome time for me.”--Butler, quoted by Bob Dutton, The Kansas City Star, July 2, 2012

Of course, the real story turned out to be the Home Run Derby the night before the game. Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano, captain of the AL side in the derby, said before the rosters were announced that he would like to have a Royal on his team. Butler was not necessarily a home run hitter, but in 2012 he was in the middle of a career-high 29-homer season. And it’s the Home Run Derby; sure, you want to win, but it’s an entertainment event as part of an entertainment event. Cano did not pick Butler. For 10 or so minutes, as Cano took his turn in the derby, the boos rained down. Possibly the loudest boos in Kauffman Stadium history. They were only interrupted by raucous cheers when Cano’s hits fell short of the fence. Cano got skunked, the only contestant not to hit at least one homer. Butler downplayed any animosity towards Cano, although he was grateful for the fans’ support.

As for the game, Butler grounded out against Cole Hamels in the seventh and struck out in the ninth against Joel Hanrahan. It hardly mattered, as the NL had built up an 8-0 lead before Butler’s first at-bat. 

This would be Butler’s only All-Star appearance, so, in my mind, the fans booing Cano had a point.

Lorenzo Cain (2015)

The criminally underrated Cain easily could have been an All-Star in 2014, when he was hitting .315/.351/.440 at the end of June, with his usual excellent defense in center field. But he was passed over. In 2015, Royals fans made sure that he’d be on the team. Kansas City partisans caused quite a stir in the weeks leading up to the game, voting incessantly for the boys in blue; at one point, eight Royals were leading the vote at their position. Eventually, four Royals were voted in as starters, with Cain among them. 

“If I would have made the All-Star team last year, I probably would have been a little overwhelmed. But just going through that postseason experience, it definitely helped me out tremendously. I’m just enjoying this moment right now. I feel like I’m right where I need to be.”--Cain, quoted by Andy McCullough, The Kansas City Star, July 14, 2015

Batting fifth and playing right field instead of his usual spot, Cain popped up in the first against Zack Greinke, who was traded by Kansas City to Milwaukee in exchange for Cain and the next player on this list. But Cain would collect a single against Madison Bumgarner in the fourth (a bit of revenge for the previous year’s World Series) and an RBI double against Clayton Kershaw in the fifth. That’s a pretty good night.

Cain went back to Milwaukee as a free agent before the 2018 season, where he made his second All-Star team that year and finally won his elusive Gold Glove in 2019.

Alcides Escobar (2015)

Escobar was probably the biggest beneficiary of Kansas City fans’ voting spree for the 2015 All-Star Game. The other three Royals who made the lineup (Cain, Salvador Perez, and Alex Gordon, who ended up missing the game with a groin injury) were, you know, stars. Escobar might seem like a poor choice, but really, there were no standout shortstops in the AL that year, in the post-Derek Jeter void. And he was hitting .281/.316/.367 at the end of June, which isn’t terrible except for the on-base percentage. Also, he was playing great defense; Escobar would win his only Gold Glove at the end of the season. So it was a defensible selection by the fans. It was also exciting for the player.

“I’m thinking about the All-Star Game all the time; that’s my dream. Right now I got the opportunity, and right now I feel so happy…I can’t explain my emotions right now.”--Escobar, quoted by Blair Kerkoff, The Kansas City Star, July 6, 2015

While AL manager Ned Yost normally penciled Escobar in at the top of the Royals’ lineup, for this game, he had him hit ninth. So I guess Escobar exceeded expectations by getting one hit, a single off Kershaw, in his two at-bats. But those were his only two at-bats in any All-Star Game, although he played into the 2022 season.

Eric Hosmer (2016)

Although Hosmer had a terrific year in 2015, once he didn’t get in the game through the fan voting, he was left off the team; likely, all the other Royals who made the team (pitchers Wade Davis and Kelvin Herrera joined the ones mentioned above) made it hard to justify a spot for their first baseman. But when he was hitting .305/.367/.490 through June, he earned a starting spot in 2016. Yost told his first baseman the year before that he would make the team, and had already decided he would push for it in 2016. But it wasn’t necessary, as Hosmer beat Miguel Cabrera by about 220,000 votes.

“It’s just a tremendous honor to be recognized by the fans, not only in Kansas City, but throughout the world. And just looking at the roster and going over all the players, it’s an honor to share the same locker room as them and be honored as an All-Star.”--Hosmer, quoted by Rustin Dodd, The Kansas City Star, July 6, 2016

Hosmer made his presence felt in San Diego. Facing his old teammate Johnny Cueto, Hosmer homered with one out in the second to tie the game (Perez would hit a two-run shot later in the inning to give the AL the lead for good). In the third, he collected an RBI single against Jose Fernandez. That all earned him the MVP award, joining Bo Jackson as the only Royals to win the award to date. Hosmer was also the first Royal to hit a home run in the game since Bo did it in 1989. And just like Bo, Hosmer would only appear in one All-Star Game in his career.

Jason Vargas (2017)

Vargas was the subject of some laughs among Royals fans when the team said they had “a major baseball announcement” after the 2013 season. The announcement turned out to be the signing of a pitcher who went 9-8 with a 4.02 ERA for the Angels the previous season. But when Vargas helped the Royals win the 2014 AL pennant, the signing seemed pretty good. Unfortunately, Vargas suffered a torn UCL in 2015, missing half of that season and most of 2016 after Tommy John surgery. So it was a cool story when he began the 2017 season hot, going 6-3 with a 2.39 ERA through May. Vargas then pitched his way to an All-Star Game appearance with six wins in June, dropping his ERA to 2.22 in the process.

“I’ve never been invited before, so I am definitely looking forward to heading out to Miami and taking it all in. To be acknowledged and recognized with the best players in the game is a huge honor.”--Vargas, quoted by Alec McChesney, The Kansas City Star, July 3, 2017

With the lowest ERA in the AL and more wins than anyone in baseball except Clayton Kershaw, Vargas was considered a possibility for the starting nod. But Chris Sale ended up getting that assignment. Vargas came into the game in the fourth inning. Nolan Arenado led off with a single but decided to tag up on a fly ball to center field, and Mookie Betts made a strong throw to second for the double play. Marcell Ozuna grounded out, and that was it. Vargas threw only 10 pitches.

Vargas did lead the majors in wins that season with 18, but would only pitch two more seasons. This was his only All-Star appearance, but he can always say he has an ERA of 0.00 in the competition.

Andrew Benintendi (2022)

The Royals made a pretty good deal when they acquired Benintendi from Boston before the 2021 season, basically giving up nothing and getting a Gold Glove winner in 2021 and an All-Star in 2022. Kansas City was pretty bad in both of those seasons but Benintendi was a good choice for the team, as he was hitting .305/.370/.383 through the end of June, along with the strong defense you’d expect from a Gold Glove winner. It was his first time as an All-Star, although he played in the Futures Game in 2016.

“It’s a game you want to play in, a game you grew up watching. So to be a part of it will be fun. I’m definitely going to take it all in and just try to enjoy it as much as possible.”--Benintendi, quoted by Lynn Worthy, The Kansas City Star, July 12, 2022

Benintendi entered the game in the fourth, replacing Giancarlo Stanton just after he hit the game-tying two-run home run that would get him the MVP award. Benintendi grounded out and struck out in his two at-bats.

Just over a week later, the Royals traded the pending free agent to the Yankees. He signed with the White Sox after the season. His first two seasons on the South Side were kind of rough, but he’s had a couple of decent ones since then. Still, this remains his only All-Star appearance to date.

Seth Lugo, Cole Ragans (2024)
Kris Bubic, Carlos Estevez, Maikel Garcia (2025)
Michael Wacha (2026)

I lumped all these players together since, with the exception of Bubic, they are still Royals, for now anyway. Plus, these ought to be fresh enough in our memories. Will any of them work their way off this list? Garcia seems like a decent bet if he can stay healthy, but the rest might be staying on here.

View full article