What others are saying about Paul Splittorff
Here’s a sampling of what others had to say on the passing of Kansas City Royals pitching great Paul Splittorff, who graduated from Arlington High in 1964 and died Wednesday at the age of 64:
Hall of Famer George Brett, a Royals teammate:
“He wasn’t blessed with a 100-mph fastball, he wasn’t blessed with a Bert Blyleven curve, he wasn’t blessed with a tremendous changeup, but he was blessed a good brain. He knew how to pitch. He was blessed with a big heart and put it all on the line. He was always prepared; he was always in good shape.”
Kansas City broadcaster Denny Mattews, who called every major league game Splittorff pitched:
“He really got the most out of his ability. He was a good athlete, but he had to work at it, and he did. He recognized that. He always worked hard.”
Royals broadcaster partner Ryan Lefebvre:
“I never worked a game with him where I felt like he was giving a little less effort today than he did yesterday, whether it was research, talking to a player of a coach about a guy he didn’t know much about. “There’s probably a whole generation of kids in Kansas City who don’t know Paul Splittorff pitched for Kansas City and won 166 games. He’s just a Royals broadcaster who gives them great information, great content every game.”
Dave Mulder, a fan posting at kcroyals.com:
“Split always had time for his friends and his fans. I took my 80-year old mother to a game in Minnesota and introduced her to Paul. He spent 20 minutes just visiting with her about baseball, Morningside College, and anything else she wanted to visit about. We shared the same baseball coach at Morningside during different time periods and I’ll never forget Paul coming to his funeral even though it was in the middle of his major league season. He was very special and we will all miss him.”
Royals owner David Glass:
“This is a very difficult day for our organization. We will not only miss the insight and humor that he injected into every telecast, but most importantly we will miss his friendship. He epitomized class.”
Former Kansas City Royals teammate Frank White:
“Paul didn’t have that electric slider or that devastating curveball. But he was always steady and he always studied, always worked hard to do his very best. That’s why he was so successful both on and off the field.”