Casting Kansas City Royals as Super Bowl Stars
Who would Bobby Witt Jr., Vinnie Pasquantino and Lucas Erceg be if they were Chiefs?
As excited as I am that pitchers and catchers report in mere days, 99.9% of Kansas Citians remain fully focused on football. A shot at three consecutive Super Bowl championships, and permanent glory, will do that to a city.
As others have mentioned before me, one of the amazing things about the Chiefs cementing themselves as the NFL’s latest dynasty is how short it makes the baseball offseason. Instead of turning our attention to starting rotations and right field platoons in January, we’re captivated by crucial third-down conversions and fourth-quarter stops.
So, with Super Bowl 59 in focus, let’s have a little fun with cross-sport comparisons.
Who would our favorite Royals be if they were Chiefs?
Bobby Witt Jr. : Patrick Mahomes
Ah, yes. The low-hanging fruit.
Franchise icons. KC saviors. The city’s favorite sons. Humble superstars.
Salvador Perez : Travis Kelce
Is this one too obvious as well? The aging stars who still have enough in the tank to make magic happen on the grandest stages?
Regardless, it’s a match for a few reasons: Veteran, emotional leadership; offensive prowess at positions typically manned by role players; unmatched toughness and durability. Oh, and those smiles.
Lucas Erceg : Chris Jones
When late-game heroics are needed, these are the two who shine brightest and keep opponents off the scoreboard.
The bulldog mentalities. The fearlessness in clutch situations. A desire for the game to rest on their shoulders.
The closers.
Kyle Isbel : Nick Bolton
I fear I may be burned at the stake for this one. The Gold Glove-caliber centerfielder and hard-nosed linebacker provide their teams with up-the-middle defensive cogs. Both with shortcomings, however: Isbel at the dish and Bolton in pass coverage.
Vinnie Pasquantino : Isiah Pacheco
These fan favorites wear their hearts on their sleeves, playing with a sense of urgency to put runs and points on the board, the former with an advanced plate approach and innate ability to get runners home, and the latter with a turf-punishing running style, particularly in the red zone.
And don’t forget the injury parallels between Pasquatch and Pachec…squatch? (Sorry.) Each of whom overcame serious afflictions to return just in time for playoff runs.
Cole Ragans : Trent McDuffie
There’s a loose comparison here somewhere about trading an aging veteran for a prospect (or a draft pick that became a prospect, in McDuffie’s case). But comparing Aroldis Chapman to Tyreek Hill takes some of the luster away from the connection.
Instead, just focus on what these two defensive(?) stalwarts do best: neutralize the opponent’s best offensive weapons with a versatile array of skills. For Ragans, it’s elevating fastballs, pulling the string on changeups and burying sliders with equal parts nastiness and precision. For McDuffie, it’s blending press-man coverage skills on the outside with speed and shiftiness to defend the slot and an uncanny knack for timing a blitz so the opposing quarterback never sees him coming.
Seth Lugo : Justin Reid
A pair of free-agent signings who turned out to be worth their weight in gold. Lugo immediately provided the Royals with a veteran arm in the rotation who they relied on to mentor a burgeoning star in Ragans. Reid replaced the polarizing Tyrann Mathieu just when the Chiefs defense was in a bit of flux, helping it transform from a “just do enough” group to one of the elite stop units in the NFL.
Michael Massey : Xavier Worthy
Are we getting to the point we’re reaching? (Haven’t we been reaching this entire exercise?) Sure.
But I couldn’t resist pairing two undersized players with the ability to hit the home run, literally in Massey’s case and figuratively in Worthy’s. To be fair to Massey, he’s not that undersized, but to be fair to you, I had to get the Chiefs’ fleet-footed rookie in here somewhere.
Did I miss any? Share your favorites below! If I may offer a non-baseball prediction: Chiefs 27, Eagles 23.