Alex Gordon was supposed to be the
second coming of George Brett for the Royals, but he hasn't exactly lived up to any of the hype this season. He's currently mired in an 0-for-19 slump, and got Tuesday off against
C.C. Sabathia and the Cleveland Indians.
The slump has dropped his average to .172 on the season, but when you consider it's never been higher than .195, it's not saying much.
So the debate has begun. Should the Royals send Alex Gordon back down to Omaha to get his act together?
Buddy Bell doesn't think so.
"I still feel the same way about him," manager Buddy Bell said. "I'm really not interested in his numbers. I just want to see him get better. There was a stretch for about three weeks when he was hitting the ball hard and not getting much reward for it
"I saw a lot of progress. The last week, he's kind of reverted to the way he was early in the year. I'm hoping that doesn't continue for very long."
Arguments can be made for both sides. In the last few years, the Royals have sent
Mark Teahen and
David DeJesus down to Omaha when they struggled, and both came back better than ever. The downside of sending Gordon down, is that the Royals don't have many options at third base.
Mark Teahen is a full-time
first baseman right-fielder now, so asking him to switch back to third wouldn't be very fair. That means
Esteban German would have to move to third base full time. That's not a bad thing, but it would result in something horrific.
If German moves to third base,
Angel Berroa would get more time at shortstop, and
nobody wants that. I don't even think Berroa thinks that's a good idea.
Previously at The Fanhouse:George Brett Likes Alex GordonAngel Berroa Is Back
