baseball

Major League Baseball's record books were officially updated Wednesday to include Negro Leaguers who played in one of seven leagues from 1920 to 1948.

Metalsmiths in Colorado are remaking Jackie Robinson in bronze after the theft of a beloved statue of the civil rights baseball icon from a park in Wichita, Kansas, set off a national outpouring of donations.

Only about 5% of college baseball players and coaches are African American. At Kansas Christian College, team leaders have made a deliberate effort to recruit from inner-city Kansas City — boosting Black representation in the process.

The 1954 landmark Supreme Court ruling in Brown v. Board of Education marks its 70th anniversary today. While lead plaintiff Oliver Brown is the most well-known figure in the desegregation case, there were 12 Black women alongside him. Plus: A small Kansas college is trying something unique to recruit Black baseball players.

Herzog led the Royals to their first ever playoff appearances and three straight American League West titles. In St. Louis, the Hall of Fame manager launched the Cardinals to a World Series championship.

In Tuesday's election, 58% of voters opposed the 3/8ths-cent sales tax. The tax would have funded a downtown ballpark for the Royals and renovations to Arrowhead Stadium for the Chiefs.

The deals from the teams come after months of fraught negotiations with Jackson County and community groups. The teams call the deals historic. Community groups and economists aren’t so sure.

Tom Walsh will apply a special, league-approved mud to more than 200 balls for every game, including the upcoming Royals home-opener on March 28 against the Minnesota Twins. The substance, described as a cross between chocolate pudding and whipped cold cream, is designed to take the shine off the ball and provide a better grip.

Matt Stewart's "The Kansas City Royals: An Illustrated Timeline" was a chance to revisit forgotten stories about the team and get them in print for posterity.

A series of upcoming talks from the International Relations Council will explore the intersections of sports and geopolitics in Kansas City and nationwide. Experts say access and intentionality are critical as the city poises itself to host World Cup matches in 2026.

On April 2, Jackson County voters will decide whether to give Royals $1 billion to construct a ballpark in the Crossroads Arts District. But the team has yet to share its full plan for funding the stadium, and experts warn that lack of transparency could lead to extra spending on unnecessary upgrades.

The Royals are asking Jackson County voters to sign off on a $1 billion sales tax to pay for a new stadium in the Crossroads. But even then, they’ll need another $700 million to make it happen. That’s where the team expects Kansas City and Missouri taxpayers to come in.