A lifetime of Kansas City sports collecting is headed to the auction block, and the haul is as deep as it is personal.
More than 1,000 items from the collection of Bill Baxter - known in his younger days as “Young Bill” - will be sold in a series of charity auctions, with the proceeds going to 29 charities across the Kansas City metro, including Children’s Mercy Hospital and the Kansas City Zoo.
“This is the best of the best of Kansas City sports legends right here,” Professional auctioneer Bruce Murphy said.
Baxter’s connection to local sports ran straight through his childhood. His father worked in the ticket office for the Kansas City Athletics at Municipal Stadium, and Baxter was a clubhouse kid for the A’s from 1955 to 1968, until the team moved to Oakland.
When the Royals arrived in 1969, he was there for every home game behind home plate. He collected from the age of 6 until his final days last March.
Murphy said the auction is about more than the items themselves.
“Bill spent his entire life collecting and so not only we’re gonna tell that we’re gonna sell the items that we have here, but we can sell his memories and we’re gonna tell Bill’s story of what he collected in his. He had such a passion for the game,” Murphy said. “And the best thing is they’re gonna be somebody else’s memories.”
Murphy, who said, “I’ve been an auctioneerist since 1973,” called it one of the most enjoyable auctions of his career.
“Were also here to tell Bill’s story of what he collected. He wants somebody to enjoy these memories that he had and there’ll be memories for somebody else for a collector for a young man that a young child that loves baseball.
They’re gonna know that they might not know who George Brett was or who Buck O’Neill is or any of these players but they can learn. I mean it’s just fascinating the history of Kansas City sports right here that I have the honor and the privilege to sell.”
The collection spans the Royals, Chiefs, Monarchs, Kings, Blues, Spurs, Scouts and Athletics. Among the standout pieces are three opening-day tickets from April 12, 1955 at Municipal Stadium, when President Harry Truman threw out the first pitch. Murphy said, “I can’t prove this that these were Harry Truman’s tickets,” and added, “When the administrator found these tickets, they were in the safety deposit box and normally when you put stuff in a safe deposit box, they’re very treasured.”
Also included is a 1955 baseball signed by the entire Kansas City Athletics team from its inaugural season, seven signed George Brett bats, about 50 signed baseballs, and somewhere between 10 and 15,000 baseball cards. The auction also features jerseys, programs, bobbleheads, helmets, yearbooks, posters, and even dirt from the stadium.
The first online auction begins Monday at 7 a.m. and runs through Nov. 22 at 6 p.m.
In Other News...
Royals Just Made An Offensive Hire Young Bats Cant Ignore
The Royals have added another familiar name to their coaching mix, hiring Hunter Mense as a hitting coach and giving the staff a voice with both major league experience and local roots. Mense arrives after serving as the San Francisco Giants hitting coach in 2026, following a stretch as an assistant hitting coach with the Toronto Blue Jays from 2022 to 2025. For a Kansas City club still looking to sharpen its offensive identity, the move brings in someone who has worked in different big league environments and knows the grind of helping hitters adjust at the highest level.
Menses background also gives the hire a little extra resonance around here. He is a Missouri native and a former University of Missouri player, so this is not just another outside addition to the coaching staff, but someone with ties to the region and an understanding of the baseball culture that comes with it. For young Royals bats especially, the next question is how that experience will translate once the work begins in Kansas City. [Read more 🡒]
Royals Face A Narrow Window To Fix Their Biggest Roster Problem
The Royals are heading into an offseason where every move figures to be measured against both the payroll and the calendar. With financial constraints hanging over the club and an impending lockout looming, Kansas City is expected to shop carefully even as it tries to address the biggest issue on the roster: a pitching staff that needs help if the team is going to stay on track for a 2027 push.
Clay Holmes and Casey Mize are among the names being floated as possible fits, a reminder that the Royals may have to find value rather than splash. The challenge is not just identifying the right arms, but getting those decisions made in time to build a staff that can support the clubs longer-term plans before the market and the labor situation make the window even tighter. [Read more 🡒]
Royals Prospect Pipeline Is Demanding Attention Again
The Royals farm system is getting another spotlight in the Arizona Fall League, where Angeibel Gomez, Zion Rose and Justin Lamkin were chosen to represent the American League in the Fall Stars Game. It is another reminder that Kansas Citys prospect pipeline is drawing real attention again, with three different names earning recognition on a stage that tends to separate the merely interesting from the truly notable.
Gomezs selection stands out even more because he is the youngest player ever picked for the game, while Lamkins presence adds a different kind of storyline after he returned to action following a shoulder injury. The Fall Stars Game will be shown live on MLB Network and streamed on MLB.com and the MLB app, giving Royals fans a chance to keep tabs on a group that is starting to make some noise beyond the organizations own prospect lists. [Read more 🡒]