KANSAS CITY, Mo. — History is written by the victors, and the newly crowned Royals wasted no time. In the jubilant visitors’ clubhouse at Citi Field, the champagne had yet to dry when first-base coach Rusty Kuntz introduced the hidden protagonists of their tale.
The Royals have assembled one of the industry’s most well-respected scouting operations departments. As Kuntz explained, it was through their painstaking efforts that the heroes targeted their foil.
This is how they became convinced that Lucas Duda couldn’t throw.
And in the warm afterglow of clinching the World Series — after Duda’s errant throw sucked the last bit of life from the teetering Mets — the Royals reveled in a scouting report that proved to be prophecy.