The 1974 Kansas City Royals season was their sixth in Major League Baseball. The Royals finished fifth in the American League West at 77–85, 13 games behind the Oakland Athletics. Pitcher Steve Busby set a single-season franchise record with 22 victories.
Offseason October 24, 1973: Dick Drago was traded by the Royals to the Boston Red Sox for Marty Pattin.Dick Drago at Baseball Reference December 7, 1973: Lou Piniella and Ken Wright were traded by the Royals to the New York Yankees for Lindy McDaniel. Baseball author Bill James called the trade the only clinker the Royals made during the 1970s. January 9, 1974: Mark Souza was drafted by the Royals in the 1st round (17th pick) of the 1974 Major League Baseball draft.Mark Souza at Baseball Reference
Regular season
Notable transactions April 30, 1974: Paul Schaal was traded by the Royals to the California Angels for Richie Scheinblum.Paul Schaal at Baseball Reference June 5, 1974: 1974 Major League Baseball draft Willie Wilson was drafted by the Royals in the 1st round (18th pick).Willie Wilson at Baseball Reference Scott Sanderson was drafted by the Royals in the 11th round, but did not sign.Scott Sanderson at Baseball Reference June 11, 1974: Doug Corbett was signed by the Royals as an amateur free agent.Doug Corbett at Baseball Reference August 6, 1974: Orlando Cepeda signed as a free agent by the Royals.Orlando Cepeda at Baseball Reference September 27, 1974: Orlando Cepeda was released by the Royals.
Season standings
Record vs. opponents
Roster 1974 Kansas City Royals Roster Pitchers Catchers
Infielders Outfielders
Other batters Manager
Coaches (Pitching) (Third base) (Hitting and first base)
Player stats
= Indicates team leader Batting
Starters by position Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in Pos Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI C Fran Healy 139 445 112 .252 9 53 1B John Mayberry 126 427 100 .234 22 69 2B Cookie Rojas 144 542 147 .271 6 60 SS Freddie Patek 149 537 121 .225 3 38 3B 133 457 129 .282 2 47 LF Jim Wohlford 143 501 136 .271 2 44 CF Amos Otis 146 552 157 .284 12 73 RF Vada Pinson 115 406 112 .276 6 41 DH Hal McRae 148 539 167 .310 15 88 1974 Kansas City Royals Statistics and Roster Baseball-Reference.com
Other batters Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI Al Cowens 110 269 65 .242 1 25 Howard Gold 96 239 64 .268 11 30 Frank White 99 204 45 .221 1 18 Buck Martinez 43 107 23 .215 1 8 Orlando Cepeda 33 107 23 .215 1 18 Kurt Bevacqua 39 90 19 .211 0 3 36 83 15 .181 0 2 Paul Schaal 12 34 6 .176 1 4 Fernando González 9 21 3 .143 0 2 Dennis Paepke 6 12 2 .167 0 0 Bobby Floyd 10 9 1 .111 0 0 Rick Reichardt 1 1 1 1.000 0 0
Pitching
Starting pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO 38 292.1 22 14 3.39 198 Paul Splittorff 36 226.0 13 19 4.10 90 Al Fitzmorris 34 190.0 13 6 2.79 53 31 175.1 8 10 3.13 96 17 103.0 5 7 4.02 41
Other pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L ERA SO 25 117.1 3 7 3.99 50 Dennis Leonard 5 22.0 0 4 5.32 8 Aurelio López 8 16.0 0 0 5.63 5
Relief pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Player G W L SV ERA SO 55 7 6 10 2.73 62 38 1 4 1 3.46 47 Steve Mingori 36 2 3 2 2.81 43 Joe Hoerner 30 2 3 2 3.82 24 Gene Garber 17 1 2 1 4.82 14
Awards and honors
All-Star Game
John Mayberry, 1B, Reserve Cookie Rojas, 2B, Resserve Steve Busby, Pitcher, Injured, Did not play
Farm system
Notes
References
1974 Kansas City Royals at Baseball Reference 1974 Kansas City Royals at Baseball Almanac