KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Come fall, Billy Joel will play Kauffman Stadium's first concert in 39 years, team officials and event organizers announced Friday.

The September 21 event will be the first time the ball field has served as a stage since an REO Speedwagon concert in 1979, back when the venue was still called Royals Stadium.

The piano man played a baseball park across the state in 2017, packing Busch Stadium the same day last September.

Live Nation, the company organizing the event, expects The K will hold between 35,000 and 40,000 fans for the concert.

"This is the type of concert that everyone will always remember. You will always remember that you were at Billy Joel for the first concert in 39 years. We love to put together those big events in big venues that haven't been done before," explained Dave Gerardi, the president of Live Nation Midwest.

The Royals had Hall of Famer George Brett make the announcement Friday morning. The Royals pointed out several uncanny parallels between the careers of Brett and Joel. For example, Brett earned batting titles in three decades. And Joel released number one songs in the same three decades: 70s, 80s and 90s.

"George retired in 1993. Joel's last original single was in 1993. George was inducted into the baseball Hall of Fame in 1999. Billy Joel was inducted into the rock 'n' roll Hall of Fame in 1999. Both are scheduled to be here on September 21," said Toby Cook, a Royals spokesman.

Tickets go on sale to the general public Friday, January 26, at 10 a.m. on the Royals website. Season ticket holders can buy tickets early, on Wednesday, January 24.

Cook said the Royals plan to hold two to three concerts per year at Kauffman Stadium over the next several years.

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