So what's the deal with Frank White?
 

Just had 810 on and Kietzman was talking about trying to get Frank White to throw out the first pitch for one of the World Series games.

What is the issues between White and the Royals in the first place?

White wanted a shot at being Manager and the organization didn't want to

White got sick of waiting


short version

HE got removed from the FOX Sports KC broadcasting team in favor of journeyman Rex Hudler for being too critical of the Royals.

that too

I knew about this - but figured there must be more to the story.

For the record; Hud > White

Thats why Frank White is mad. On the other side, the Royals finally got sick of Frank White. In public while he was employed by the team, Frank White would complain to anyone who would listen about how he felt the Royals were disrespecting him or mistreating him. He would even complain often to people who worked for other teams about the Royals.

At some point, even if you were a great player, the team could not put up with an employee trashing the organization all the time. They probably would have given him some honorary assistant to the GM paid job like Brett if he was a team player.

Not to derail but have they announced who it will be? Brett?

The rift that sent him packing was supposedly between him and Dan Glass. But Frank has found reasons to be angry, and reasons to think he's being disrespected by the organization, going back to the end of his playing career. The only constant in the equation is him.

These guys.

Frank White and the Glass family hate each other.
That's pretty much it.

It'll be interesting when Frank becomes a Jackson County Commissioner. The stadiums are under the political thumb of Jackson County. Great soap opera brewing there....

There's also something about the Royals trying to cut his pay. He was in some sort of PR position--making appearances and whatnot for the team--and they asked him to take a pay cut but still expected the same number of appearances.

If you think Hud is better than White you need your head examined

I'm sure part of it is his wanting to manage and being passed over for guys like Tony Muser and Trey Hilman, but I wouldn't be too quick to take the Glass side. They kind of seem to be dicks.

Hud is growing on me, but I thought Frank was great. Not just doing a good job a the normal stuff, but as a former great player on the team he was able to inject some history and interesting anecdotes into it, and he had a lot of credibility doing it. He KNOWS the Royals present and past.

maybe not better but the positive attitude and energy has worked out

Hud is not better or worse than Frank.

They're different personalities.

Really, what would be great would be a three man announcing crew with a straight play-by-play guy, Hudler giving his lighter anecdotes and analysis along with his friendliness joined by a guy with Royals' history that can offer more contemporary analysis with a more serious tone.

I was impressed with Ibanez's dugout interview a while back but I'd think he'd take time off before jumping into the booth [EDIT] and even then, I feel like MLB Net or another team's TV broadcast would get him.

He wasn't a great TV guy. I can see the Royals perhaps making the move. The only place I have ever heard it was because he was "too negative" was when someone was getting their information from him. At one point he was quoted saying he was done with the Royals for good.

The Royals definitely should have handled the situation better and let him return to the front office at least. But the way that White waged this PR battle in the media didn't reflect well on him either.

That being said, he posted photos of he and his wife on Twitter from the stands at one of the ALCS games.

Idk man, maybe. I think it's probably because I'm younger and like Hud's excitement and passion. White always seemed a little boring to me.

I'd be pissed if I was White. He agreed to substitute for Splitt while he was trying to recover from his medical problems and agreed to take over when Splitt could no longer cover games. So being a good dude, he agreed to go ahead and finish out the year, and in appreciation of his willingness to help out, the Royals made up a bullshit story about him being "too negative" and fired him or didn't renew him for the next year. I thought the whole deal sucked. He was a great announcer for those people who have a fundamental understanding of baseball. For the general public, perhaps not so good since he spoke above their knowledge level

Frank White stepped in to cover for Paul Splittorff when he got sick and couldn't do color on the TV broadcasts any more. Frank has a manager's baseball mind. He's very intelligent, but all those years of butt ugly baseball really wore him down. It's worn on all of us long suffering fans who knew this team didn't have to be a doormat forever. I hope they kiss and make up this week, but I wouldn't bet on it.

My mom once told me my worst personal character flaw was that I hold grudges.







I'll never forgive her for saying that.

The Royals did not offer a public explanation at all for letting White go, much less say he was too negative.

As for his skills as an announcer, he was not good at all. He was pretty bad. Hudler isn't better, but they were both two opposite shades of awful.

Good gawd. No...just NO. White wasn't horrible, but he's not even close to Hud on being a wing man in the booth.I could care less on the whole positive/negative thing. Frank was dull, IMO...and he was always my favorite player growing up because I LOVE his great D at 2b.

That's just :facepalm:

Frank White was a bad announcer, and I'm not talking about being "negative" or whatever. He was boring as hell.

I don't need a clown like Hudler either, but Frank White was not compelling at all. People are defending his announcing skills only because he is Frank White.

As usual, I agree with you.

Frank White was more boring than Bob Davis, (Bob Davis covering baseball that is), and that's really saying something.

He was brutal. His monotone voice coupled with droning on and on.....it was time.

I just don't even...:shake:

Gubicza does a fine job for the A's wish we could lure him home. Probably wont leave Cali now.
John Wathan I always thought was well spoken and knowledgeable of the game. He would be good in the booth for baseball knowledge that all catchers and former managers have. I believe he is in house as a special assistant.

Put me down as a boring vote too.


I liked to hear the stories and stuff, that's all cool, but he went on and on in the same tone...


Someone said three man booth and I agree that's the only way it would have worked..

We used to practice little league in wathan's back yard.

Hey, look at that. Keitzman is white knighting a guy that has problems with the Royals. Who would have guessed?

FTR, White throwing out a first pitch would be nothing but awesome, imo.

Agreed

Isn't he still first base coach with the T-Bones? I thought he was when I saw them in June.

As a Kansas Citian I like Frank White about as well as any Royal. But if he is mad about not being offered Manager well thats ridicules. There are plenty of teams out there none took him in there fold as possible manager material. There is more to this than we will know. I doubt it was just money or manager. It may not be Glass at all and possibly Dayton.

He's about the only former player that would really get an already-pumped crowd to erupt. Brett is and will always be the #1 franchise superstar, but he's done it so many times, it's not a big deal seeing him go out there anymore.

Whats with all the Frank white bashing?

Put me down as a Frank White basher as well.

I've been an avid Royals fan since Lou Piniella drove in the winning run on Opening Night in 1969, so I think I qualify as "knowledgeable" baseball fan. I found Frank White's monotone as a broadcaster to be be incredibly boring, and I got sick and tired of his constant whining about not getting the respect he felt he deserved.

Frank White is in the Royals Hall of Fame. He was respected. His problem is that he thought he should be idolized just as much as George Brett, and he resented the fact that he wasn't.

Frank White was an excellent player. But he was not in the same ballpark as George Brett.

We are discussing why he was let go by the Royals. That's hardly bashing

I haven't seen any bashing in this thread.

Probably is more we don't know, but I think he was pretty pissed about not being offered manager.

They had discussed him taking over as manager some day and they sent him to manage the AA team. He was there three years and the teams had good records. Then the Royals sign Buddy Bell and then Trey Hillman--not exactly top-line manager candidates.

Well I dont know what the past promised Frank but Dayton had no history with him and had every right to go with who he thought was best for his team. Frank knows baseball and there are no certainties. I still think it was something else.

Well, yeah, he had every right to go with whoever he wanted. I'm just saying that I think it was at least expressed to Frank that he'd get a real shot at the position. Otherwise, I don't think he would have spent three years in AA (and he did well there). And then to get passed over for Trey Hillman...you can see why he might be a little ticked.

But I think it was that + a few other things.

Frankly, I think he dodged a bullet not being manager of this team. Managing this team most of the last 20 years has been an absolute no-win situation and he'd surely have been fired after a few years.

I enjoyed Frank in the booth. That is all....

There are a bunch of different articles you could probably dredge up on this. Here's a good one from Bob Nightengale.

http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/sport...als/56101496/1

I guess he actually went to a game in September, and went to the Wild Card game, so he's around. Who knows what's fact and fiction. I believe it was Mellinger who said White had a reputation of badmouthing the Royals in private.

What?!?!? Frank White always had good input on the game while doing the TV broadcast.

Hud's just a moron......a lovable moron....but still a moron.

My bad. I thought some comments in this thread and others were making assumptions that he walked away from the Royals because he wasn't given the manager job. I know thats not the reason straight from Frank himself. Again, I apologize if I misunderstood the comments.

Its mostly a bunch of conjecture with some facts thrown in. Overall, I don't feel anyone is badmouthing him at all.

I think the most negative thing posted was regarding his booth work.

Frank was stiff and awful in the booth at first. He learned to relax and even giggled freely which a few jagoffs took issue with, and became a pretty valuable analyst. He boasted about himself being "world-class" as an athlete which is the tone-deafness that probably got him into trouble on other topics. Too bad he's not involved some way now. Thankfully Hudler has grown on me.

He's like a fungus.

I'm telling you. Phys + Hud + a Royals "insider" who is straight-laced and by-the-book would be a good-to-great baseball telecast.

I don't remember the exact wording of it. But back when Frank split with the Royals, Mellinger wrote a column that mentioned how Frank more or less had certain ass-kissers in his ear, stoking his anger for their own self interest. Frank's son even tweeted a reply that confirmed it.

Supposedly Keitzman is chief among them.

Whats really sad in all this is we have a retired number for a guy that isn't associated with the team at all now. Regardless of who initiated the split, that is just sad.

Nail - Head

If only they'd built that downtown stadium like he told them to.

KK is an uber d-bag with delusional thoughts of self worth in this community. He seems to genuinely believe anyone who doesn't 100% buy in to his lunacy deserves the worst.

I know people love Frank White because of what he did as a player, but he was not a good TV announcer/color man.

Boring, bland, complacent and not nearly as insightful as some think.

I can think of an easy fix for that.

I disagree. I hate the 3 man baseball booth. I like watching baseball, not hearing a bunch of dudes fill the entire inning with words. While Hud has gotten better, imo, adding a 3rd person would be word overkill for me.

HUD is more than happy to 'kiss that ass'. White should have known better than to bite the hand that feeds.

If fans want critical sports analysis, that's what the local papers, ESPNs and CNNSI's of the world are for. Not company employees.

who is bashing?

I've mentioned before that Frank White was my favorite player on those 80s Royals team, but he was not good at all in the booth.

Rex Hudler sucks ass, though.

1981 Donruss was a ****ed-up set. A bunch of the photos were blurry and like half the cards had errors. 1981 Fleer was pretty much the same.

That was the first year in a long time that other companies were allowed to compete with Topps, but they were not allowed to include gum in the card packs.
True story.

Well Topps didnt put gum in with the cards either. I don't know what it was but gum no way. That stuff was hard and crunchy like a thicker potato chip. After crunching it up in your mouth finally you could work it into something chewable. My brother and I once put it in our pet white rat cage. Next morning it was still there untouched. Finally we would just chuck it in the trash after we couldn't give it away to my sister and her friends.

Frank White was so dry that Ryan was the squirly guy on the broadcast. Also how tough was Splitt that he could cuss out the Royals basically on-air and get away with it. I think people were scared of him lol.

Yeah, people who are saying Frank White got fired for being too negative need to explain Splitt to me. He wasn't exactly a cheerleader with velvet gloves.

I think Splitt would throw them bows. I remember him calling Renelvous Hernandez fat LOL

I thought Frank was great in the booth. Part of it was his KC cred, but I also felt like I learned stuff fairly regularly from listening to him. This thread is literally the first time I have encountered anybody expressing a negative opinion of his work in the booth.

Iif a Frank tries to jack with the Glass family when Commissioner, maybe Glass will move the team across the State Line and show him that a well-paid player that was extremely well paid while a player, but under-qualified to be manager and sucked as a broadcaster, should quit bitching and be thankful to an organization that paid him millions.

Sorry Frank, you've gotten plenty of respect from the a Royals and KC. If it's not enough fir you and Keitzman, tough shit.

this

Chiefs should fire Dawson.

From what I heard is that they didn't actually fire him from the broadcast, they cut his pay significantly and wanted him to make more appearances, and not just the TV broadcast. He (White) thought he should be paid more because he was going to be doing more and Glass family gave him an ultimatum of "accept the deal or we'll find a replacement". Frank White decided to not take the deal and he felt that he was disrespected and decided that he was completely done w/ the Royals and the Glass family.

Well there is pride and there is stupidity. Sometimes you bite the bullet and do what satisfies the organization. Or you go Franks route and get mad walk away and take a 10 grand a year job.

He set Tupac up outside of the Bad Boy studios in NYC, leading to him getting shot five times. Tupac survived and then cut the best dis track of all time.

Jeff Passan wrote a long article about this for Yahoo. A couple tidbits.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/why-roy...044453095.html

+1

I do not think Glass can move for quite awhile with the stadium upgrades we paid for.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kauffman_Stadium


yep, til 2030... Looks like we are also the 6th oldest stadium in MLB.. She looks great.