| 1971 Kansas City Royals | ||
|---|---|---|
| League | American League | |
| Division | West | |
| Ballpark | Municipal Stadium | |
| City | Kansas City, Missouri | |
| Record | 85–76 | |
| Divisional place | 2nd | |
| Owners | Ewing Kauffman | |
| General managers | Cedric Tallis | |
| Managers | Bob Lemon (first full season) | |
| Television | KMBC-TV | |
| Radio | KMBZ (Buddy Blattner, Denny Matthews) | |
| ||
The 1971 Kansas City Royals season was their third in Major League Baseball. The Royals had the first winning season (85–76) in franchise history, good enough for second place in the American League West and 16 games behind the Oakland Athletics. Kansas City earning a winning record in its third season was the second fastest of any expansion club in Major League Baseball history up to that point, the 1962 Los Angeles Angels achieved a winning record in their second season. The record would stand until the 1999 Arizona Diamondbacks won the National League West title in their second season.
By comparison, none of the Royals' expansion brethren--the Milwaukee Brewers, Montreal Expos and San Diego Padres--enjoyed a winning season prior to 1978.