Alex Gordon has endured a rough season so far, one that has left him acknowledging he’s “played like crap.”
The Kansas City Royals outfielder is batting a career-worst .206 in 58 games this season. This all comes after he signed a four-year, $72 million contract in the offseason. His lack of performance — especially given his big payday — has him frustrated.
“All I can say is I’ve played like crap,” Gordon told the Kansas City Star’s Rustin Dodd.
Gordon’s strikeouts are up, his contact rate is down this season, and he’s making less contact specifically on balls out of the zone.
“Baseball is a hard game,” Gordon said. “Sometimes it doesn’t always work out the way you want it to. But at the same time, you just got to keep pushing on and move on. The second half — hopefully better things are yet to come.”
The second half of the season could offer Gordon a fresh start. He was off to a rough start to the season before breaking a bone in his hand, which led to an even worse time at the plate after he returned to the lineup in late June.
For a guy who has posted an OPS over .800 three of the past five seasons, there is reason to believe he will improve in the second half. The Royals certainly could use the production, especially with Mike Moustakas out for the season and Lorenzo Cain currently on the DL.
