Forgotten Legends: Vincent Edward ‘Bo’ Jackson (Royals 1986-1990, White Sox 1991,1993, Angels 1994)

“First of all, I really never imagined myself being a professional athlete.” – Bo Jackson

Looking at the man to the left that is hard to believe. Bo Jackson was one of the best athletes that I have ever seen. Jackson played in the Major Leagues less than ten years, but his mark will forever be on the sport. His promising career was cut short by a hip injury suffered while playing his “hobby” sport of professional football. If not for that injury who knows what could have happened?

Baseball Legends: Gaylord Perry (Giants 1962-1971, Indians 1972-1975, Rangers 1975-1977, 1980, Padres 1978-1979, Yankees 1980, Braves 1981, Mariners 1982-1983, Royals 1983)

“He should be in the Hall of Fame with a tube of KY Jelly attached to his plaque.” ~ Gene Mauch

Bob Gibson will forever be remembered for his 1968 season. Nolan Ryan for his seven no-hitters and 5000 strikeouts. Don Larsen for his perfect game in the World Series. And Gaylord Perry for his spitball.

The stories about Perry’s doctored pitch abound, even from former teammates. Catcher Gene Tenace said, “I can remember a couple of occasions when I couldn’t throw the ball back to him because it was so greasy that it slipped out of my hands. I just walked out to the mound and flipped the ball back to him.” Despite the anecdotal evidence, he was not ejected from a game for doctoring the ball until 1982, near the end of his career. For that incident, he was suspended for ten games.

Baseball Legends: George Brett (Royals 1973-1993)

“I could have played another year, but I would have been playing for the money, and baseball deserves better than that.” – George Brett

The above quote was given by George upon his retirement. It showed what he thought of the game along with everything that he put into it. George Brett was drafted by the Kansas City Royals with the 29th pick in the 1971 draft. The next pick in the draft was fellow Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt. He was a good third basemen, but in 1974 he became a great hitter. He worked with legendary hitting coach Charlie Lau during the All-Star break on his swing. His average showed that he listened to Lau. In 1975 he hit over .300 for the first time, and won the batting title in 1976 with a .333 average. He finished out the decade by tearing the cover off of the ball, and leading the Royals to the AL West title three times (1976, 1977, 1978).