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Glass: Royals' achievement 'finally sinking in'

KANSAS CITY -- Royals owner David Glass can't wait to get to the Winter Meetings next month in Nashville, Tenn., just to strut his stuff a little with his fellow owners after his team captured its first World Series title in 30 years.

"Oh, I'm going to have a little fun with them, that's for sure," Glass said by phone recently.

Glass said he was hoping he'd be spending a little more time with the World Series trophy, but added with a laugh, "Eric Hosmer and Salvador Perez stole the thing and ran away with it."

Hosmer and Perez took the trophy with them to New York City last week for an appearance on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon."

The magnitude of what his team accomplished is finally settling in for Glass.

"It is finally sinking in," Glass said. "I think I am finally getting over that Game 7 from last year [the loss to the Giants in the World Series]. That Game 7 stuck with me for a long time.

"But now I've got some new memories to replace that one. I couldn't be happier."

Glass also remains in awe of the World Series parade held in Kansas City, with an estimated 800,000 fans in attendance.

Video: Royals parade through KC to celebrate championship

"I have never in my life seen that many people in one place at one time," Glass said. "Just to see that much blue in the crowd on a beautiful day, it's something you'll never forget."

Of course, within hours after the parade, the Royals were already in meetings gearing up their offseason plans.

Left fielder Alex Gordon, the longest-tenured Royal and the face of the franchise, turned down his player option at $13.75 million. The Royals made a qualifying offer to Gordon of $15.8 million.

But the future of Gordon with the Royals remains a major uncertainty.

"No matter what, Alex will always be a Royal in our eyes," Glass said. "He is everything you want in a ballplayer.

"But we have not sat down and taken a look at the numbers yet. That time will come. But in the end, Alex needs to do what is best for him, and [general manager] Dayton [Moore] needs to do what is best for the Kansas City Royals."

Gordon's situation is just one of many decisions facing Glass, Moore and the Royals.

"Change is inevitable," Glass said. "You almost never see a team anymore come back with the same roster they had the year before. And if they do, sometimes that's not a good thing.

"You look at last year. We didn't want to lose Billy Butler or James Shields, but that happens in this game. Sometimes change is good. The main thing is you keep your core group of players together for as long as you can and you fill in the blanks with the other positions the best you can. That's how Dayton has done such a tremendous job."

Jeffrey Flanagan is a reporter for MLB.com. Follow him on Twitter at @FlannyMLB
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