The record stood for 32 years. It finally fell on Wednesday night at Rogers Centre.
Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas clubbed a solo homer against Toronto reliever Carlos Ramirez in the top of the sixth inning, recording his 37th homer of the season and surpassing Steve Balboni’s franchise record of 36.
Playing on a sore right knee, Moustakas ended a drought of 15 games without a home run as Kansas City built a 13-0 lead against the Blue Jays. The long-awaited blast erased one of the most dubious Royals records from the books.
For decades, Balboni’s record of 36 homers, set in 1985, has stood as a testament to the Royals’ lack of power and home run prowess, a truth that persisted through baseball’s Steroid Era, through different managers and eras, through a long stretch in which the fences were moved in at Kauffman Stadium.