‘100 Things Royals Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die’ covers the highs and lows of franchise’s history

Editor’s note: Blair Kerkhoff talks to authors of sports-themed books in an occasional series for The Star.

Several of Matt Fulks’ books have featured the Royals. This one, “100 Things Royals Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die,” is all-encompassing, featuring the high and low points and the heroes and characters of the franchise’s history.

Q: What’s the order of the 100 Things, and is it something of a ranking of moments and personalities?

A: It’s a ranking of 100 moments, intriguing stories and personalities, plus things that every Royals fan should do. For instance, a couple of the to-dos are to visit the site of Municipal Stadium and eat at Chappell’s to see all of the Royals memorabilia. I don’t consider it a true ranking of 1 to 100 only because No. 100 is a tribute to Fred White, a fitting way to end the book. Up to that point, though, it is more of a ranking. Spoiler alert: the top moment might be from the 1985 World Series.

Q: What did you learn about the Royals that you didn’t know before writing the book?

A: I’ve been fortunate to write a few books with Denny Matthews, including one with both Denny and Fred. And I already had written a lot on such topics for The Star and other outlets, but I did learn a great story on how Dan Quisenberry pursued the Royals, and was able to delve into the moments and players, like Bo Jackson and Jeff Montgomery, more than I have for previous projects.

Q: Because this is something of a history of the organization, can you identify one or two moments when the Royals’ fortunes turned for the best (early) and worse (1990s)?

A: There were several early factors, but I think credit is due to general manager Cedric Tallis, who should be in the club’s Hall of Fame. Through trades, he brought in Amos Otis, Hal McRae, Fred Patek, Cookie Rojas and John Mayberry, to name a few. Then, George Brett, Steve Busby, Dennis Leonard and Paul Splittorff all were drafted and came through the farm system under Tallis. As for the ’90s, I think there was a series of things. There was an urgency to win another title before Ewing Kauffman died that brought some ill-advised moves and signings, plus there was a lack of direction between Kauffman’s death and David Glass buying the team, not to mention the game’s changing economics.

Q: What was the inspiration for writing 100 Things?

A: The book is part of a series by Triumph Books in Chicago. In early 2013, after wrapping up my previous book, “Conversations at Chappell’s,” I felt the need to start another project. Knowing there wasn’t a Royals book in the “100 Things...” series, I mentioned it to my editor. They happened to be thinking about a Royals “100 Things...” book when I called. It was simply good timing. Excitement about the Royals certainly didn’t hurt.

Q: Do you have a favorite story in the book?

A: As a neurotic writer, I either really like all of them or really dislike all of them. That said, one story that turned out to be fun was No. 29. It’s basically a quick-hit guide to some Kansas City barbecue restaurants, with about 18 former players selecting their favorite spot. I think my editor, who’s originally from Kansas City, would’ve ranked it even higher.

This story was originally published October 7, 2014 at 10:23 PM with the headline "‘100 Things Royals Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die’ covers the highs and lows of franchise’s history."