The 1973 Kansas City Royals season was their fifth in Major League Baseball. Jack McKeon replaced the fired Bob Lemon as manager and the Royals finished second in the American League West with a record of 88-74, six games behind the Oakland Athletics. Kansas City's 88 wins were the most in franchise history. Paul Splittorff (20-11) became the first Royals pitcher to win 20 games in a season. Offseason November 30, 1972: Roger Nelson and Richie Scheinblum were traded by the Royals to the Cincinnati Reds for Hal McRae and Wayne Simpson. February 1, 1973: Joe Keough was traded by the Royals to the Chicago White Sox for Jim Lyttle. Regular season On April 10, the Royals open their new park, Royals Stadium, with a 12–1 rout of the Texas Rangers. The game is attended by 39,464 fans braving 39-degree weather. On April 16, Steve Busby threw the first no-hitter in Royals history. The Royals beat Detroit by a score of 3–0. On May 15, in a game against the Royals, Nolan Ryan of the California Angels threw the first no-hitter of his career. On August 2, George Brett made his major league debut. Season standings Record vs. opponents Notable transactions April 2, 1973: Greg Minton was traded by the Royals to the San Francisco Giants for Fran Healy. May 8, 1973: Tom Murphy was traded by the Royals to the St. Louis Cardinals for Al Santorini. June 5, 1973: 1973 Major League Baseball draft Ruppert Jones was drafted by the Royals in the 3rd round. Rob Picciolo was drafted by the Royals in the 4th round of the secondary phase, but did not sign. Roster Player stats Batting Starters by position Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in Other batters Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in Pitching Starting pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Other pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts Relief pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L =