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The KC Royals’ first offseason came before free agency. Trades and drafts were the order of the day. One great deal changed the club.
The winter of 1969-70 was something new for the KC Royals. In a limited sense, it was the club’s second offseason, preceded only by the formative fall and winter months of 1968 during which Ewing Kauffman’s front office, with the Royals’ first Opening Day months away, assembled Kauffman’s very first team.
But the club’s second winter was its first after a season played. Like any team coming off its inaugural campaign, the Royals were a work in progress and the time between season’s end and the start of spring training gave them the chance to retool and add new parts.