Kauffman crowd still loves Beltran, boos Cano - KCTV5

The Detroit Tigers' Prince Fielder won the 2012 Home Run Derby.

He drew a round of applause for praising "the great fans" at Kauffman stadium.

But this derby also will be remembered for the vitriol shown by the crowd at the K toward defending Home Run Derby champion Robinson Cano. As the American League's team captain, Cano had indicated he would pick a hometown Royals player for the derby.

But Cano reneged and left designated hitter Billy Butler off his list. And then he offered a fishy explanation.

Spurred by Kansas City sports talk radio, boo birds rained their displeasure onto Cano each time his name was announced. He seemed a bit sheepish during his initial introduction.

The chants of "Billy Butler" started even before Cano came up to bat.

Whether to boo or not boo Cano divided the Royals faithful.

"I'm going to show some respect and not boo him," said 16-year-old Lucas Snyder of Leawood, KS.

Blue Springs resident James Norman came to the Home Run Derby along with his 7-year-old son Maddox.

"It's too bad that Cano couldn't select (Butler)," Norman said.

Lindsay Preisinger and Stephanie Kowal suggested that Major League Baseball issue a rule that the hosting team get an automatic representative.

But baseball Commissioner Bud Selig opposes such a rule, saying there will always be controversy by the selections.

The constant boos and "Billy Butler" chants seemed to affect Cano, who was hitting off pitches thrown to his father. Cano got 10 outs without a single home run, sending the crowd into a frenzy. Butler got huge cheers each time he was shown on the JumboTron.

The derby was still going when Cano took to Twitter.

"I can't believe I have so many fans in KC lol smh (shaking my head)," he wrote. "Can't win them all *kanye shrug.*"

After telling the national broadcasters that he didn't care about the boos in Kansas City, he took to Twitter to ask fans where should he take his team to celebrate in Kansas City. He later congratulated Fielder on his victory.

The national media seemed taken aback by the booing, and most of the headlines focused on that. Some thought it was an issue of Royals vs. Yankees. Whether to boo or not divided Twitter but got Robinson Cano and Kauffman Stadium trending.

Pop singer Nick Jonas chastised Royals fans who booed Cano.

The issue was still the talk of Kansas City and baseball fans 24 hours later. And Cano got booed when he was introduced before the All-Star game. During his first at bat, he was serenaded by chants of "Billy Butler."

Angie Nichols scoffed at the criticism of Royals fans who booed Cano.

"For people to say Kansas City should be embarrassed of what happened I think is ridiculous," she said. "We are supporting our players."

Jon Blumemthal, who came down from Omaha for the game, said he thought Cano deserved the boos.

"This town loves Billy and he should have been in the Derby last night," he said. 

"I thought it was well deserved. This town lives Billy and he should have been in the Derby last night"

Royals officials shrugged off the criticism of the booing and backed the fans.

"It was a decision that Robinson made and you saw how our fans reacted," said Mike Swanson, vice president of media relations for the Royals. "The best thing about it is that Billy knows how the fans here got his back. And that's a pretty good feeling for a ball player to have when he steps on the field."

Former Royals player Carlos Beltran, now playing for the cross-state St. Louis Cardinals, drew cheers from the fans who apparently have resolved their anger after he bolted.

If the FBI and Homeland Security agents keeping an eye out above the Hall of Fame had hoped for a low profile, Mark Trumbo ended that. He belted a ball 475 feet onto the roof above the building, electrifying the crowd.

CLICK HERE TO SEE SLIDESHOW OF PHOTOS FROM ALL-STAR MONDAY INCLUDING CHOPPER5 OVERHEAD AT KAUFFMAN STADIUM.

Fielder became only the second player to win multiple titles in the All-Star Home Run Derby, thrilling the crowd at Kauffman Stadium with eight splash shots into the right-field fountain and beating Toronto's Jose Bautista 12-7 in the final Monday night.

Fielder put on the most powerful display among baseball's big boppers. Winner at St. Louis' Busch Stadium three years ago, Fielder hit a total of 28 home runs during three rounds to cap the main event on the eve of the All-Star Game, hitting the longest drive of the night at 476 feet into the water.

Fielder might want the All-Star Game to return to Kauffman - or at least Missouri - soon.

A breeze across the outfield helped take the edge off the heat. Fans poured into the stadium when the gates opened at 4 p.m.

Jennifer Brown told KCTV5 she normally watches the derby on television, but a special gift had her with one of the coveted tickets.

"It was our 11th anniversary, and a friend of ours gave us tickets so we thought it would be fun," Brown said.

The breeze, while nice for fans, meant the players had to earn every one of their long-range shots.

Blue Springs native David Cook, who won the American Idol competition in 2008, sang the national anthem. The Zac Brown Band also entertained the crowd before the start of the derby.

Former New York Yankees great Reggie Jackson sat in the Buck O'Neil legacy seat.

Many VIPs attended the derby, including Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon, a Democrat who is up for re-election this November. Jackson County Sheriff Mike Sharp and Missouri Sen. Jolie Justus, a Democrat from Kansas City, were spotted in the crowd.

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