I’d be interested to know how many members of the 1969 Royals still hold team records. It has to be a small number, both because that was many years ago and because that team, being an expansion team and all, had a dearth of players good enough to set a franchise record that might survive. One record I know of that is still held by an original Royal is most hits in a game. You probably know Kevin Seitzer is a co-holder of that record, and you might remember when Joe Randa tied it. But you might not know that the first Royal to do it did so less than a month into the team’s first season. And you probably don’t know much about Bob Oliver.
Robert Lee Oliver was born on February 8, 1943, in Shreveport, Louisiana. But he grew up in Sacramento, attending Highlands High School and American River University in the suburbs there. The Pirates signed him to his first professional contract in 1963 (the draft would not come along for another couple of years). Oliver had some nice minor-league seasons, including hitting 15 home runs in Class AA in 1965. That got him a late-season promotion to the majors, but it would be a while before he was back in The Show.
Unfortunately for Oliver, the late-1960s Pirates were a tough roster to crack for a first baseman/third baseman/outfielder. Pittsburgh had Donn Clendenon at first, Maury Wills at third, and Willie Stargell and Roberto Clemente in the corner outfield spots. So Oliver toiled away in the minors for two more years before being dealt to Minnesota. That didn’t help him get closer to the majors, and after another year at Class AAA, the Twins left Oliver unprotected in the expansion draft. The Royals selected him with the 19th pick, and at last he had a real chance at the major-league level.
In the 24th game of the 1969 season, the Royals faced the California Angels on a Sunday afternoon in Anaheim. Oliver singled in the second, doubled in the fourth, smacked a two-run home run in the fifth, singled twice in the seventh as the Royals sent 12 men to the plate, and finished his day with a single in the ninth. His second hit in the seventh inning was originally ruled an error, but the official scorer changed his mind and gave Oliver an infield hit. Just like that, Oliver had a Royals record that has lasted 47 years and counting. Oliver would also hit the first grand slam in team history, on July 4 of that 1969 season.
Oliver ended that season with a solid .254/.294/.393 line and 13 home runs in 425 plate appearances. But he would surpass those numbers in 1970, his finest season as a Royal.
After a season where he had played five different spots, Oliver seemed to enjoy being the full-time first baseman. He started slowly but collected nine hits in four games in mid-April, then ended the month with a six-game hitting streak. In early May, he had three straight games with three hits. A mini-slump dropped his average to .278 in late May, but an eight-game hitting streak with 14 hits had him back up to .303 quickly.
Oliver kept his average around .300 for most of June, but eventually it slipped below .270. However, his power picked up as he belted seven home runs in July. He followed that with six more in August. By the time September rolled around, Oliver had 26 home runs and it looked like he would easily pass 30. But it didn’t happen. Although he maintained his average, Oliver hit only one homer in September. Still, he ended the season with a .260/.309/.451 line, and 27 home runs. That stood as the franchise record until John Mayberry hit 34 in 1975. It was also good enough for ninth in the American League, ahead of luminaries like Frank Robinson and Reggie Jackson.
The Royals had precious little offense in 1970, but Oliver was a big part of what they did. In addition to leading the team in home runs, he was second in doubles and triples and led the team in RBI. He also played in 160 games, giving a second-year expansion team some much-needed stability.
Oliver obviously liked being at first base most of the time, and liked the Royals’ managers in 1970 (Charlie Metro and Bob Lemon) better than the team’s first manager, Joe Gordon.
“First base is my position, and I hope to remain there for a long time, right here in Kansas City…Charlie Metro and Bob Lemon both said to go out there and play ball, take three good cuts and make good solid contact. A player can’t hit one way for five to six years and then come to the majors and succeed in five or six months.”—Oliver, quoted by the Associated Press, July 5, 1970
But things didn’t work out that way. Oliver’s offense fell off in 1971, as he hit just .244/.277/.351 with eight homers. By the end of the season, he had been relegated to part-time duty. After the Royals acquired Mayberry that winter, Oliver was expendable. Kansas City dealt him to the Angels in May 1972 for pitcher Tom Murphy. It wasn’t a good trade for the Royals; Murphy would be dealt to St. Louis almost a year later while Oliver thrived back in California.
In three seasons with the Angels, Oliver hit 45 homers and posted a .262/.301/.404 line. But he made a bigger contribution off the field, as he spent his offseasons as a police officer with the Santa Ana Police Department. While he mostly served as a truancy officer, he did spend some time on the street, too.
“I wanted to see what I could do in the community instead of just coming out here to an assembly and saying ‘All you guys, now you behave now.’”—Oliver, quoted by the Associated Press, February 13, 1974
The Angels traded Oliver to Baltimore late in the 1974 season, and the Orioles sold him to the Yankees in the offseason. But New York released him after just 18 games in the 1975 season, and his major-league career was over. He spent three more seasons in the minors, and even played two seasons in Mexico before finally hanging up his spikes.
After his playing days, Oliver remained connected to the game by running a baseball academy in Sacramento, as well as managing an independent team there. And of course, he was connected to the majors by one other reminder of that 1970 season—his son Darren, who was born in Kansas City just days after the season ended and went on to have a 20-year major-league career.
Bob Oliver may not be a household name for Royals fans anymore, but he obviously had a full life. Whether it’s a Royals record that might not be broken or a young person whose life was touched by his work away from the ballpark, or even his son’s career, Oliver obviously has left some lasting legacies.
Bob Oliver’s best games of 1970
9/8 vs. CAL: Went 4-4 with a walk, scored three runs and drove in three in 12-0 win.
4/20 @ OAK: Homered twice and singled, driving in three runs in 4-2 win.
5/7 @ BAL: Went 3-4 with home run and double, driving in four in 7-6 loss.
7/28 @ DET: Homered twice and drove in four runs in 7-6 win.
7/26 @ CLE: Went 3-4 with a home run and five RBIs in 6-5 loss.
About the card
A good shot at the man picking out his lumber. One of my favorite things about 1970s and even some 1980s cards is seeing guys wearing what looks to be a giant trash bag. I’m glad technology has evolved. I presume this was taken in spring training in Florida, so it must have been taken early.