Thursday, May 21, 2015

Player Profile: George Brett

I have 126 cards of George Brett. This one is from 1988 Score.

Playing career: Arguably the greatest third baseman of all time and definitively the greatest Kansas City Royal of all time, Hall-of-Famer George Brett is one of four players all-time to hit .300 with 3000 hits and 300 home runs, the only player to win a batting title in three decades, and a 13-time all-star. Probably his most well-known accomplishment was his run at a .400 batting average in 1980. He finished at .390, led the league in both on-base and slugging percentages, and was the only player to have an OPS+ higher than 200 (203) between 1970 and 1991.

Where he is now: He is the VP, Baseball Operations for the Royals, and was prominent on TV during Kansas City’s surprise playoff run last year. Also with his brother Bobby (and formerly, his late brother Ken) he owns a sporting company called Brett Performance Sports, formerly known as Brett Bros. Brett Bros. was sued in 2012 for false advertising over the health benefits of their bracelets and necklaces. The suit was settled out of court.

My memories: When I think of Brett my first thought is the pine-tar game. Only against the Yankees can a player clearly break the rules and then get away with it. Still a very entertaining saga even if it was a bit before my time. By the time I was following baseball he was more of an elder statesmen, but he seems to have represented the Royals and baseball in general very well. I wonder if he is the best baseball player of all time to go by the name of George? George Ruth went by his nickname, and George Seaver and George Griffey use their middle names.

Google Autocomplete results: He is first when you type George Br, ahead of George Brown College, a university in Toronto. There do not appear to be any other prominent George Bretts.

Coming up next: The next profile will be Ken Brett.

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