"Welcome to the White House, everybody. Let's give it up for the World Series champions -- the Kansas City Royals," the president said. "I know many of you have been waiting a long time to hear this, so I'll say it again -- the World Series champion Kansas City Royals."
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Obama went on to introduce Royals greats George Brett and Frank White; Royals owner David Glass; team president Dan Glass; general manager Dayton Moore; and the players and coaching staff.
"Let's face it, it's been a long road for Royals fans," Obama said, detailing the team's decades-long journey leading to the 2014 playoffs, when they came up just short in Game 7 of the World Series against the Giants, and culminating in their dramatic comebacks against the Mets last year en route to the World Series title.
Thank you to @POTUS and @WhiteHouse staff for hosting your 2015 World Series Champs today! #Royals http://pic.twitter.com/ttPqMMl5dN
— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) July 21, 2016
The president talked about how the franchise meshed analytics with Ned Yost's managerial style, "all of which combined to create one of the grittiest teams of all time." He detailed how the Royals constructed a team featuring an offense that didn't strike out -- "They've been called the best contact team ever," Obama said -- a lights-out bullpen, a fast defense and aggressive baserunners who helped bring the championship home.
"You can see why Royals fans love this team -- I mean love this team," the president said, recalling the World Series parade in Kansas City that was attended by an estimated 800,000 fans.
After Obama concluded his remarks, Yost presented the country's 44th president with a Royals jersey, with "Obama" and the No. 44 across the back.
David Adler is a reporter for MLB.com based in New York. Follow him on Twitter at @_dadler. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
Royal greeting: Obama fetes World champs
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