Memorabilia Memories: A Late September Game With The Worst Team In Royals History

I don’t know if other Royals fans do this, but every year on September 30, I watch highlights of the 2014 American League Wild Card Game. September 30, 2014, was “the night Kansas City baseball came back to life,” as beat writer Andy McCullough beautifully titled his 2015 retrospective. Exactly nine years prior, playing out the string of what was then the worst season in team history, the Royals got blasted 10-1 by the Toronto Blue Jays. What do these two games have in common? I’m so glad you asked.

Before we get to that answer, why does a framed lineup card from this game hang proudly in my parents’ basement? Perhaps it’s a memorial to all of the games like this one we sat through at the K during my childhood, even though this game was in Toronto. I grew up in Liberty, MO, a proud Royals fan even during the lean years of the mid-2000s. My dad had a 20-game season ticket package for Section 232, Row BB, Seats 3-6. I’ll remember those numbers forever. In this series at Royals Keep, I’ll look back on Royals history from this century, the good and the bad, through the lens of memorabilia. For the record, I believe my dad got this lineup card from a family friend who worked for the team. 

Making his last start of the 2005 campaign in this game was a young Zack Greinke. It so happened that the future Hall of Famer had a terrible year: his 17 losses led the AL, and Greinke finished with a 5.80 ERA and an ERA+ of 76 (100 is the league average). He lurched through four innings in this game, allowing seven runs and finishing with a game score of 17. 

It’s not like the 2005 Blue Jays were an offensive juggernaut either. They finished collectively with a 94 OPS+. Still in their mid-to-late 20s were hitters like Vernon Wells, Orlando Hudson, and Alex Rios, all of whom had productive careers but were still finding their footing. Managing the squad in his first full season was John Gibbons, who later served as the bench coach for the Royals under both Trey Hillman and Ned Yost. 

On the mound for Toronto was righty Josh Towers, wrapping up the best season of his career. Aaron Guiel’s pop-up to lead off the game put Towers over the 200-inning threshold, and he finished the year with a 3.76 ERA and 3.6 fWAR, over half his career total. Towers pitched a complete game, throwing his nine frames in just 94 pitches, scattering nine hits and striking out six Royals.

The best part of these meaningless September games is often the young prospects or career minor leaguers who get a cup of coffee in the big leagues. This was much more prevalent with rosters expanded to 40 slots, which were curtailed to 28 in 2020. John-Ford Griffin only got 23 MLB at-bats, but he produced 28% of his career hits and 44% of his career RBIs in this contest. The former first-round pick, batting ninth as the designated hitter, doubled off of Greinke and batted in four as the Blue Jays raced to a 10-1 win in a snappy 2 hours and 16 minutes (pre-pitch clock!)

Watching Griffin’s career game from the bullpen was a young Blue Jays pitcher named Jason Frasor. Little did he know that exactly nine years later, he would allow a go-ahead single to Alberto Callaspo before a young Royals catcher pulled a cathartic double down the left field line. That’s right, the winning pitcher of the 2014 Wild Card Game is tucked into the lower right corner of the lineup card, proving that baseball (even terrible mid-2000s Royals baseball) is full of interesting connections. Isn’t that what America’s pastime is all about? 

If anyone reading this wants to torture themselves further with mid-2000s Royals nostalgia, you can actually watch this game on YouTube. The late, great Paul Splittorff joins a young Ryan Lebrevre on the RSTN broadcast, as the Royals don their iconic black jerseys. Another perk is that there is no k-zone on the broadcast! Happy watching!