Kansas City Royals: Alex Gordon wants to keep playing past 2020

By Leigh Oleszczak | May 14, 2020

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - JULY 23: Left fielder Alex Gordon #4 of the Kansas City Royals runs the bases after hitting a solo home run in the sixth inning during the game against the Atlanta Braves at SunTrust Park on July 23, 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Mike Zarrilli/Getty Images) /

The Kansas City Royals drafted Alex Gordon in the first round 15 years ago and while some thought 2020 could be his final year, it appears the former Cornhusker wants to keep playing past 2020.

This season – assuming there is a season – is going to be an odd one due to the Covid-19 pandemic. It was initially thought to be Kansas City Royals left fielder Alex Gordon‘s final year before he hung up the cleats, but it wouldn’t have seemed fair if that was how it went down.

Fortunately, Gordon told Lynn Worthy of The Kansas City Star that he wants to play “at least a few more years”. Prior to this report, it really did sound as though 2020 would be Gordon’s swan song, but now it looks like he isn’t going to be retiring any time soon.

Gordon returning is good news for the Kansas City Royals because he provides a Gold Glove talent in left field and showed in 2019 that he can still hit too, batting .266 with 13 home runs in his age 35 season. This came after three straight seasons of struggling for the former first round pick (though he started to come around late in the 2018 season).

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With the pandemic putting baseball on hold, having someone like Gordon on the team will be crucial. This is a team filled with younger and less experienced players, so a veteran like Gordon will be a nice player to have when things can finally resume.

Gordon might not be the .300 hitter he was in the early 2010s, but he’s still a fantastic defensive player, has improved on offense after some down years, and he means a lot to this organization. If nothing else, perhaps the team can get something useful from trading him, which would be an added bonus.

The Royals do have some prospects who are waiting their turn to play left field, but with Gordon waiving his 10 and 5 rights prior to signing this last deal, he could be traded to a contender. That gives Gordon a shot at winning another World Series ring and brings back a prospect or two in return to the team who he won his first title with.

With that said, however, Gordon has said in the past that he’d like to finish his career with the Royals. He recently said that he thinks this team resembles the unit from early in his career that went on to win the World Series in 2015. As Steve Adams from MLB Trade Rumors noted,

"If Gordon’s postseason aspirations are to come true, he’ll likely need another couple of years at least."

While Gordon sticking around for 2020 and maybe 2021 could work, the Royals are eventually going to have guys like Kyle Isbel and Khalil Lee ready to play in the outfield and there are a limited number of spots there obviously. If Gordon is still playing well, then keeping him for a few more years is fine.

How would you feel about Alex Gordon staying with the Kansas City Royals for a few more seasons?

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