EDITOR’S NOTE: Frank White played 18 seasons for the Kansas City Royals and won eight Gold Gloves. He is regarded as one of the best second basemen in MLB history and is adored by Royals fans everywhere. White’s career is unlike any other in Kansas City sports history and even in retirement he is still giving back to the community he loves.

Topeka Capital-Journal Royals reporter Jeff Deters spoke with White and several other past Royals greats and each have wonderful stories about their time with the Royals and their careers afterward. This is the first in a five-part series.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — It’s been more than 25 years since Frank White last played for Kansas City, but at age 65 the Royals legend is still going strong and winning in a new arena.

White, a Democrat who entered politics in 2014, won his primary last week in his re-election bid for County Executive in Jackson County, Mo. He ran unopposed.

"I really enjoy the political arena," White said. "Sometimes the games that are played aren’t fun to play. But I think that if you look into your heart and you say, ‘Why are you doing this?’ Well, I’m doing it to be able to help the people of Jackson County. I’m doing it to be able to do things that are going to improve the quality of life for the people of Jackson County. I’m doing it to make sure that we’re good stewards of the taxpayer dollars.

"I think that my goal is to make a difference for the time that I have and not necessarily make decisions based on whether or not I get re-elected, but make the right decision at the right time on the right situation. If you do that enough times the election takes care of itself. So really it’s just making sure that every time you make a decision, you think about the people you have underneath you. They look to you for leadership."

White certainly provided leadership during a playing career with the Royals that began in 1973 and ended in 1990. White won eight Gold Gloves, tying Bill Mazeroski for what was then the most ever by a second baseman.

White nearly won a ninth Gold Glove in 1988, but despite having the best fielding percentage in the league (.994) and the fewest errors (4) White did not win. Instead, Seattle’s Harold Reynolds won the award despite committing 18 errors.

White, however, didn’t go home empty-handed. At a luncheon, Royals fans presented him with a Gold Glove of their own.

"It was well done," White said. "It showed me how much the fans were behind me. It was awesome."

Three times in his career White led all second basemen in the league in fielding percentage and he finished second four times. White actually began his career as a backup before he became one of the greatest to play the position.

"The thing that I think back to was just being in a position to where I was able to come to the big leagues at an early age and be in a position where I could learn from playing behind Cookie (Rojas) and Freddie Patek for two or three years, and then once the opening came I was able to step in and play regularly and play for a pretty long time, which I thought was pretty cool."

White grew up near old Municipal Stadium in Kansas City. As a kid he watched the A’s play, and then he watched them leave town for Oakland following the 1967 season. After Ewing Kauffman brought baseball back to Kansas City in 1969, White, while he was still in the minor leagues, worked on the new stadium that was being built during the winter of 1972-73 smoothing cement, sealing floors and performing other laborious tasks.

"There were a lot of days during the winter where you look down on the field and wonder if you are ever going to be able to take that on and become a major league player," White said. "So when I first got that call-up on June 12, 1973, then I realized that I was setting my feet on the field at then-Royals Stadium for the first time."

White’s path to the big leagues was certainly a unique one. He was the first member of the Royals Academy to make it to the major leagues. Though it lasted just a few years, the academy was an innovative idea by Kauffman. And had it not been for the academy, White may have never made it to the big leagues.

"Baseball was going through a transition when Mr. Kauffman took over the team in ’68," White said. "There was a redevelopment of the scouting system, and that’s why the academy was so prominent because it gave the Royals another opportunity to find players who were looked over in the draft. A lot of scouts didn’t go in the inner cities to scout the African-American players at that time.

"So he wanted a different way to find players other than the traditional scouting system and that’s where I came into play in terms of being a member of the Royals first Baseball Academy class, so he definitely had some insights there."

In August 1971, the Royals sent Art Stewart to the complex in Sarasota, Fla., to evaluate White and the first class. Stewart watched the group intently for 10 days.

"I wrote up three players in that first class, and he was one of them," Stewart said. "He was the star of the academy, but a lot of people don’t know that we had 14 players from the academy make the big leagues so the academy was really a success."

White played in five All-Star Games and hit a home run in the 1986 Midsummer Classic in Houston. He also was a key member of the 1985 World Series team.

"Going into that playoffs with the Blue Jays being down 3-1 and going into the Cardinals series being down 3-1, I think when you get your back against the wall it really shows the character of your ballclub," White said. "And we were a team that was determined not to lose that year.

"And I think that beating the odds by losing two games to (Toronto starter) Dave Stieb and coming back and beating him in Game 7, and losing two games to (Cardinals starter) John Tudor and coming back to beat him in Game 7, I was really proud of our team for being able to withstand that pressure and do something that really hadn’t been done in baseball."

After White retired, he became a coach with the Red Sox before joining the Royals staff from 1997-2001. White then joined the Royals front office before managing the Double-A team in Wichita from 2004-06. White then became a broadcaster for the Royals until he was let go. White then became a first base coach with the Kansas City T-Bones before joining the political realm.

White was at the White House when President Barack Obama honored the 2015 World Series champions last month, and though Obama will not be on the ballot in November, White’s name will once again be there for the general election. White is again running unopposed, so he has essentially already been re-elected and his term will run through 2018.

"I love the challenge," White said. "I love being in position where I can make decisions that can benefit people. And I always say that my legacy is not going to be on bricks and mortar. It’s going to be on how many people I can improve their quality of life, whether it be through salaries or through programs, things like that. That’s my goal."

WHITE FILE

Yr GP H Avg. HR RBIs

1973 51 31 .223 0 5

1974 99 45 .221 1 18

1975 111 76 .250 7 36

1976 152 102 .229 2 46

1977 152 116 .245 5 50

1978 143 127 .275 7 50

1979 127 124 .266 10 48

1980 154 148 .264 7 60

1981 94 91 .250 9 38

1982 145 156 .298 11 56

1983 146 143 .260 11 77

1984 129 130 .271 17 56

1985 149 140 .249 22 69

1986 151 154 .272 22 84

1987 154 138 .245 17 78

1988 150 126 .235 8 58

1989 135 107 .256 2 36

1990 82 52 .216 2 21

Totals 2324 2006 .255 160 886