This beautifully framed piece features an original piece of watercolor artwork glass-framed in an attractive two inch wide black resin frame with a double mat. The outer dimensions of the framed piece are approximately 17” wide x 24.5” high, although the exact size will vary according to the size of the original piece of art.

At the core of the framed piece is the actual piece of original artwork as painted by the artist on textured 100% rag, water-marked watercolor paper. In many cases the original artwork has handwritten notes in pencil from the artist (be sure to “See the actual artwork without the frame” elsewhere in this website). Simply put, this is beautiful, one-of-a-kind artwork.

The outer mat is a rich textured black acid-free mat with a decorative inset white v-groove, while the inner mat is a complimentary colored acid-free mat reflecting one of the team’s primary colors. The website image of this framed piece shows the mat color that we suggest (Medium Blue), but since each piece is custom framed, we are happy to use whatever color mat you wish (depending on availability) – our standard mat colors are:

Light Blue / Dark Blue / Brown / Maroon (close to brown) / White / Silver / Gold / Yellow (bright yellow) / Green (dark green) / Orange / Purple / Red (bright red, somewhat close to PMS 186)

Beneath the artwork is a silver plate with black text describing the original artwork. The text for this piece will read:

This original, one-of-a-kind watercolor painting of the 1985 Kansas City Royals home uniform is the original artwork that was used in the creation of this Kansas City Royals uniform evolution print and tens of thousands of other Kansas City Royals products that have been sold across North America. This original piece of art was painted by artist Bill Band for Maple Leaf Productions Ltd. 1985 was a World Series winning season for the Kansas City Royals.

Beneath the silver plate is a 3” x 9” reproduction of a well known, best-selling print that celebrates the history of the team. The print beautifully illustrates the chronological evolution of the team’s uniform and shows you how the original art was used in the creation of this print. If you look closely, you will see that the print features the actual artwork being offered for sale. The 3” x 9” print looks like this:

The piece is framed with an extremely high quality framing glass. We have used this glass style for many years with excellent results. We package every piece very carefully in a double layer of bubble wrap and a rigid double-wall cardboard package to avoid breakage at any point during the shipping process, but if damage does occur, we will gladly repair, replace or refund. Please note that all of our products come with a 90 day 100% satisfaction guarantee.

Each framed piece also comes with a two page letter signed by Scott Sillcox describing the history behind the art. If there was an extra-special story about your piece of art, that story will be included in the letter. When you receive your framed piece, you should find the letter lightly attached to the front of the framed piece.

If you have any questions, at any time, about the actual artwork or about any of the artist’s handwritten notes on the artwork, I would love to tell you about them. Simply email me, Scott Sillcox, at scott@heritagesportsart.com and I will tell you everything I can about your original piece of art. The artists and I spent well over ten years of our lives creating these pieces of original artwork, and in many cases there are stories I can tell you about your actual piece of artwork that might add an extra element of interest in your one-of-a-kind purchase.

Please note that all reproduction rights for this original work are retained in perpetuity by Major League Baseball unless specifically stated otherwise in writing by MLB. For further information, please contact Heritage Sports Art at questions@heritagesportsart.com .

 

History

This 1985 home uniform shows the team has thankfully left the double-knit jersey and Sans-a-Belt pants behind (this was abandoned in 1983). Buttons-down-the-front are back and note also the fact that numbers are on the front of the jersey (this was introduced by the Royals for the 1st time in 83). Uniform numbers first made their appearance on the front of a uniform in 1952 - the Brooklyn Dodgers were the first team to wear uniform numbers on the front of their jersey. The Braves followed suit in 1953, and the Reds joined in beginning in 1956. The 1916 Cleveland Indians actually wore a uniform number on their sleeve, but it wasn't until the 52 Dodgers that the number made it to the front.The Royals finished the 1985 season with a 91-71 record to claim their second straight AL West division title (the Royals lost to the Tigers in three straight games in the 1984 ALCS). In the ALCS Royals faced the upstart Toronto Blue Jays for the pennant in a best-of-seven affair.The Royals lost the first two games in Toronto then came back in KC to win game three with George Brett going four-for-four at the plate, with four runs and 3 RBI. They would fall the next day to go down 3 games to 1, almost an insurmountable lead for the Jays. The key word here is Almost! The Royals shut out the Blue Birds 2-0 in game five in Kansas City, and then had to travel back to Toronto for games 6 and 7. The Royals tied the series with a win in game six, thus forcing a seventh and deciding game in Toronto. In game 7 the Royals left no doubt - the Royals led all the way and beat the Jays 6-2 for their second pennant (the first being in 1980).In the All-Missouri World Series, the Royals took on the speedy St. Louis Cardinals, who led the Major League's in stolen bases this season with 314, compared to the Royals 128.The Cards jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the series winning both games in Kansas City. The Royals won game three 6-1 behind the strong pitching of Brett Saberhagen. The next day they would find themselves in a hole once again as they lost game four 3-0 to fall behind 3 games to 1. Could lightning strike twice in the same post season?Sure enough, the Royals took game five 6-1 in St. Louis and headed home to try to finish the job. Game Six provided a lot of drama that Cardinals fans can never forget. With the Cards leading 1-0 going into the bottom of the ninth, there is a disputed play at first, followed by a passed by and an intentional walk. That set the stage for Dane Iorgs dramatic two run pinch single in the bottom of the ninth and the series was tied 3-3.On to Game 7 potentially the most dramatic game in all of baseball.Saberhagen once again took the mound for the deciding game and this time pitched a five hit gem. But forget the drama Saberhagen and the Royals left no doubt in anyones mind as they took their first World Series Championship on the strength of an 11-0 blowout. Saberhagen was named the Series MVP with his two wins and miniscule 0.50 ERA. He capped off a remarkable year by being named the teams first Cy Young award winner. The hitting stars were George Brett, who went 10 for 27 for a .370 average, Willie Wilson who hit .367 and Lonnie Smith who hit .333.