Royals Rumors: Will Alex Gordon Sign With Cardinals
By Alec Tilson
The latest from Royals Rumors involves Kansas City’s prized left fielder, and the National League team down I-70.
As long as Alex Gordon is a free agent, the dream that the Kansas City Royals will re-sign the veteran outfielder is still alive.
Gordon turned down a one-year, $15.8 million qualifying offer before becoming a free agent. Since then, it’s been fair game for the rest of the MLB, and the scary thing is: the St. Louis Cardinals might be the Royals’ biggest competition when it comes to signing Gordon, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
Nightengale also ruled out one AL Central team as a possible Gordon landing spot:
Tigers GM Al Avila tells Detroit reporters that they are out of Cespedes and Alex Gordon talks. #Tigers
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) December 7, 2015
So that’s good.
When it comes to the Cardinals, however, they appear to be right in the race for Gordon. That likely assumes they wouldn’t re-sign right fielder Jason Heyward, who could command $200 million on the open market. Maybe that would free up the money to invest in Gordon.
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It’s a nightmare situation for Royals fans. The Royals would not have to face Gordon but for a few games each season, but he’d be joining the enemy. He wouldn’t be joining a division rival, which is great, but he would be playing 250 miles down I-70 and wearing Cardinal red.
It wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world, though. The Cardinals are a proud franchise, they play the game the right way, their fans are die-hard and they win. For any Royals fan who wishes Alex Gordon success, St. Louis wouldn’t be the worst place for him to build on his baseball resume.
But that just can’t happen. No way.
The Royals are still in on Gordon, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, as they wait for the market for outfielders to take shape.
Gordon will turn 32 years old in February, so it’s no surprise that he wants a player friendly, long-term deal before he signs his name anywhere.
He played in 104 games for the KC Royals last season, hitting .271/.377/.432. In his last five seasons (2011-2015), Gordon has averaged exactly 40 doubles, 20 home runs and ten stolen bases per 162 games. He won four Gold Glove awards during that span.
Gordon is, by all accounts, hard working, tireless, focused, driven, borderline obsessive, and an all-around stand-up teammate: (KC Star)
"“Gordo’s the type of guy,” Hochevar said, “that if you broke down in the middle of the night, and said ‘Alex, dude, I’m four hours away. I know you’ve got a game tomorrow, but can you pick me up?’ He’d pick you up.“And he’d still be at the field at 11.”"
When it comes to investing more than $100 million in a human being and betting that he’s going to do everything he can to make you your money back, it’s hard to find a better bet than Gordon.
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The Royals are still in the hunt for Alex Gordon, but the reality that he could suit for a different team – perhaps the St. Louis Cardinals – is one that Royals fans must accept. Do you think the Royals have what it takes to bring Gordo back?