Kansas City Royals bring in Willie Aikens as their Minor League Coach – MLB News
Kansas City Royals’ general manager Dayton Moore announced on February 1, 2011 that the team has hired Willie Aikens as their Minor League coach. It looks like the Royals are impressed by Aikens and are willing to give him an opportunity to prove himself
as their coach for Minor League.
Most people familiar with baseball are aware of the rollercoaster career that Aiken has had in the sport. During the 1980’s, Aiken managed to hit four home-runs in a single game against Philadelphia during the World Series. He managed to become the Star
of the World Series after getting eight RBIs and scoring with an average of .400.
However, things took a turn for the worse as in 1985 Aikens’ Major League Baseball career ended as he was caught up in a crime with cocaine purchasing and bribery. He was convicted and had to serve 14 years in prison. However, when he was released in 1994,
he was arrested again for cocaine distribution and was sent back to prison to serve some more time until his release in 2008.
This time, Aikens has decided to clean up his act and has sought to work with the younger players in baseball. The Royals have decided to give him an opportunity by making him the coach of their Minor League.
Royals’ general manager, Moore said, "Everybody knows Willie's story and it's one that is life-changing and we've admired the way he's handled himself in the last 2 1/2 years around the team and around the organization.”
Aikens had tremendous success during 1980-1983 as he had 77 home-runs with a batting average of .282 and 297 RBIs in 511 games. When Aikens retired, he had 110 home-runs with 415 RBIs and a batting average of .271 with Toronto.
After getting hired by the Royals, Aikens said, "I want to thank the Glass family for giving me the opportunity. I really appreciate what Dayton and [player development director] J.J. Picollo are doing for me.”
It will be interesting to see the impact that Aikens will have as coach of Minor Leagues and if his experience can help the Royals achieve some measure of success for the 2011 season.
Tags: