![]() And if there is no 2020 baseball for anyone, a one-year 2021 deal seems fair. (Coaching is a possibility if Gordon wants it–it’s hard to imagine KC passing on such an opportunity).Īn excellent 2020, on the other hand - especially one better than 2019 - could signal Gordon has enough left to warrant a 2021 return. Bringing him back for 2021 could pose too much of a risk and block any one of the club’s hot outfield prospects there might be merit in his return as a backup to help bring the up-and-comers along, but he may not want a part-time role. Mickey Mantle, for example, would have forced the Yankees’ hand if he hadn’t retired when he did.Īre the Royals at that point with Gordon? If MLB returns this season and he flops, probably. Gordon, like any other player, shouldn’t be guaranteed a long stay in the face of deteriorating performance–no player has a perpetual right to continue playing, or to take up a roster spot, when he can’t produce anymore. Some say Gordon deserves to play for the Royals as long as he wants to, an argument often made for beloved stars in the twilight of their careers but one that ignores the hard truth that baseball is at once a team sport and a business. Then the club has to decide whether to bring Gordon back if he wants to return and, if so, what his role will be. That contract expires late this year whether the KC Royals play or not. Gordon is on a one-year contract, a deal perhaps most notable for its clause waiving his no-trade rights, which may signal a willingness to move on for the chance to play in one more postseason. The fantasy is that he will the truth is that he can’t. He’s the type of player everyone wants to see play forever. Gordon is the club’s leader, an outwardly quiet force whose daily approach sets an example and establishes the team tone. Time waits for no one and issues no rain checks for seasons lost even to a pandemic. But he’s 36 now and may miss out on half, or all, of 2020, and 36 is a tough time to spend so long away from hitting big-league pitching. So it seems Gordon can still hit, or at least could last season. 275 with 10 homers in the first half, then. ![]() (He had 13 homers in 2018 but hit 21 points lower).Ĭritics may say last season’s splits prove Gordon’s improvement was illusory - he hit. 266 average, 13 home runs and 76 RBIs in 150 games. 245 the first three seasons of the deal only last year was he truly serviceable at the plate with a. It’s enough to say that only his defense resembled the Gordon of old–he won two Gold Gloves to bring his career total to seven. His disappointing performance over most of the contract term is as well-documented as the struggles he endured early in his career. Some cheered the mega-deal others considered it too long and too much to pay someone entering their age-32 season. Then came Gordon’s reward, a four-year $72 million contract, the biggest deal in club history. He was well on his way to a stellar 2015 when a torn hamstring sidelined him just before the All-Star break he returned in September, helped the Royals to the World Series and hit a memorable ninth-inning home run to tie Game 1 in a moment matching the excitement of his ninth-inning game-tying single in 2014’s Game 7. From 2011-2014, he averaged almost 20 homers and 80 RBIs per year, won four straight Gold Gloves and made the All-Star team twice. Gordon overcame his well-chronicled early struggles at third and at the plate to become a force as the KC Royals gradually shed the ugliness and despair of the countless losing seasons that tainted too much of the franchise’s storied history. But Brett’s old position and Gordon didn’t get along, so, in an early but telling display of his now-legendary work ethic, he transformed himself into the best defensive left fielder in franchise history. Fittingly, the left field concourse-based Royals Hall of Fame will someday welcome Gordon as a member. It seems like only yesterday that Gordon arrived as a “next George Brett” type player, a third baseman who the club knew could, and eventually would, hit. The focus of this story isn’t Gordon’s wishes instead, it asks whether the Royals should bring their outfield icon back when his contract expires after this season. Sparked by Kansas City Star beat writer Lynn Worthy’s piece and including David Scharff’s recent story here at Kings of Kauffman, writers are discussing Gordon’s desire to keep playing. KC Royals outfielder Alex Gordon is the popular subject of recent media pieces. One will be the future of its longtime left fielder. Whether it’s shortened or canceled, the 2020 season will have important implications for the KC Royals.
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