OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — Ben Bybee's love for the Royals was evident when he was interviewed live on KSHB 41 during the 2015 World Series parade.
"I learned not to give up until the end of the game," 12-year-old Bybee told KSHB in front of Union Station.
Tuesday, Bybee once again appeared on television, this time as an eighth-round draft pick of the San Francisco Giants.
"It's a wave of emotions," Bybee, now 21, said about his dream of being drafted coming true. "It's a lot of hard work paying off. It's a lot of sacrifices my parents have made."
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Back in 2015, Bybee kind of called his shot.
"I'm a pitcher," he said when asked what position he played.
And sure enough, the Blue Valley Southwest High School grad was drafted as a pitcher out of the University of Arkansas.
"I'm unpacking my college stuff and then repacking and then heading out tomorrow," Bybee said.
It's not lost on the 6'6", 230-pound right-handed pitcher where he's going.
After all, the year before the Royals won the World Series, they lost to ... the Giants.
"I was sitting in the nosebleeds on the first base side of Kauffman Stadium," Bybee recounted of Game 7 of the 2014 World Series. "I watched Madison Bumgarner come out of the bullpen and get Salvador Perez to pop out. And I cried. So 12-year-old Ben did not like the Giants."
But time — and money — can heal all wounds.
"I love them now," Bybee said.
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