In 1967, Kansas City lost the A's to Oakland. The city was crushed. The next year, a local businessman named Ewing Kauffman said he would put up the money to bring an expansion team to the city even though he did not know much about baseball (thread).

"I've never been a great baseball fan," Kauffman said in 1968, "but I think Kansas City ought to have a a team and I think I have a good chance of getting the franchise."

When that team — the Royals — became official, Kauffman said, "Never again will this city be without major league baseball. This team will be permanently located here...even if there is a financial loss because I can stand it."

Kauffman dumped money in the organization. He wanted his team to win a World Series. He tried new and innovative things, things that many people baseball mocked. He was a true visionary in the sport.

He was not a perfect owner. For example, he opposed changing the reserve clause when Curt Flood ushered in free agency. But he cared about his team and the city.

"I never got into it to make money," he said in 1976. "And I haven't made money."

But at times he doubted his decision to buy the Royals. He talked openly about how he thought he should have used the money in better ways to help the community: education, emergency medical programs, etc. He wrestled with that throughout his ownership.

Near the end of his life, Kauffman said, "What happens when that event occurs? The event being when I kick the bucket? Mrs. K and I are going to do some serious thinking about that." No local buyer stepped up. Even Kauffman said it wasn't a good investment.

In one of his final public appearances at the stadium named in his honor, he stood in front of the crowd and asked, "Will you write your congressmen and senators to keep baseball in Kansas City?"

I forgot to mention one other thing about Kauffman before I get to the point: He did not like to invest in buildings, he explained, because he would rather invest in people. I always loved that sentiment.

Anyway, Kauffman was sick and no local buyer had stepped up to purchase the team. He was worried the Royals would leave Kansas. So he came up with an completely unprecedented idea, which was this:

I've thought about Kauffman a lot lately, as baseball owners do everything in their power to harm the sport and disenfranchise baseball fans. Ewing Kauffman paid to run the Royals EIGHT years after his death, then gave all the money of the eventual sale to charities in his city.

If you want to read more about Kauffman, I wrote a big story on him last year. He is a fascinating figure, an owner who loved his city even more than he loved the game, but who also understood what the game meant to the people of that city. https://theathletic.com/1197429/2019/09/12/the-legacy-of-ewing-kauffman-a-baseball-visionary-who-loved-his-city/