This story is featured in Issue 5.2 of Royals Baseball Insider and is available for free to all fans who attend any game during the homestand at Kauffman Stadium from Aug. 26–Sept. 5, 2019.
More than two years ago, Bubba Starling sat alone in the batting cages late at night following another disappointing game. He tapped at his phone to deliver a helpless text message to his parents.
“I can’t do this anymore,” it read.
It had been six years since the Royals made the nearby Gardner, Kan. native the fifth overall pick in the 2011 Draft.