Comfortable Lead Gives Gordon More Time to Recover

Randy York’s N-Sider

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With Kansas City owning an 11½-game lead in the American League’s Central Division, the Royals have a luxury that seems almost as rare as a 100-carat diamond. That means the Royals don’t have to rush their iconic team leader into accelerated rehab to bring him back into the lineup sooner than necessary.

Yes, the Royals’ comfortable lead gives Gordon more time to recover from his collision with the outfield wall that had Kansas City fans holding their breath while he was carted off the field a month ago. Early predictions envisioned Gordon staying out of the lineup not only in July and August but missing big chunks of September. That may be changing, however, especially after Gordon took his first live hitting practice Saturday since sustaining the injury at Kauffman Stadium. He even shagged some fly balls in the outfield.

Lincoln's Brody Freeman, 6, watches Alex Gordon, his favorite player, take hitting practice on Saturday.

Saturday’s Live Hitting Became Gordon’s First in a Full Month

Since Saturday was Husker Day, we got the opportunity to watch Gordon take about 10 swings twice in limited batting practice, plus regain the feel of catching a simple fly ball. Ned Yost spotted our small group watching Gordon hit. The Royals manager introduced himself and said what Royal TV announcers, radio broadcasters and beat writers are all saying – there is hope that Gordon could return as soon as three weeks with a possible reassignment to one of the Royals’ minor league clubs. That means, of course, that Omaha could be a consideration.

The entire Royals’ organization understandbly soft-pedals the timing of Gordon’s return. On Saturday, a somewhat out of character Gordon acknowledged the need for him not to push too far too fast. Consistent with his personality, Gordon avoided the limelight Saturday, choosing to continue his diligent recovery and repeating the mantra the front office has adopted to bring him back into the lineup whenever the time’s right.  

Husker Fans Counting on Gordon’s Return for MLB Playoffs

The best thing about Nebraska fans is their passion, patience and persistence. Ben Massey, a sophomore majoring in Mechanical Engineering at UNL, joined his fellow Lincoln buddies that would have been sitting in perfect seats to cheer on Alex Gordon in Kauffman Stadium’s left field seats in the lower bowl.

“We come down for Husker Night at the K every year with our family,” Massey said. “We would've loved to see Alex make an appearance, but would rather see him at full strength for the playoffs because we’re expecting to see the Royals make a deep run this year. It’s fun to see how much the program has improved in the past couple years so that fans expect to see the Royals in the World Series again.”

Massey and his friends, all from Lincoln and all beginning their sophomore years at UNL, kept their seats Saturday night so they could soak in being part of the Royals’ second largest crowd of the season and the 17th sellout of the season. The group, pictured above from left, includes Bryce Wilson (Finance major), Nolan Kreifels (Economics), Evan Bunge (Sociology), Massey and Bryan Reimers (Business Administration).

Husker Red, Tailgating Made Saturday Feel Like Home

Count Omaha’s Alise Hoffman among countless ticket buyers in left field, thinking they could support Gordon with some loyal Big Red magic. “We bought our tickets last March and were looking forward to seeing Alex play,” said Alise, pictured above left, sitting next to her mom, Anita Bethune of Carroll, Neb., and her sister, Andrea Bethune, right, also of Omaha.

“We were disappointed to hear about Alex’s injury and hope he’ll return to play very soon,” Alise said. “We’re true Husker fans and love seeing the support Husker fans show, even out of state. The amount of red in the stadium and the Husker tailgates last night were exciting to see!”

Hoffman is grateful that Gordon has had an impressive career with the Royals. “We love that he stayed in KC because it's so close to Nebraska,” she said, “and we think it’s great that he donates so much money to support Nebraska’s baseball program.”

Fearful they might risk missing out on a special baseball cap with KC’s signature and Nebraska’s red logo, the Bethune trio arrived at 2:30 p.m., nearly four hours before the first pitch. “We stood in line for more than two hours in the hot sun,” Alise said. “Andrea was our planned runner to beat the other fans to the hats when the gates opened. We love wearing them.”

Herbie Throws First Pitch Before KC's 7-6 Win Over White Sox

Two years ago, Nebraska Baseball Coach Darin Erstad threw out the first pitch on Husker Day at the K. Last year, Kansas City natives Shavon Shields and Benny Parker threw out the first pitch. Saturday, Herbie Husker threw out the ceremonial first pitch, setting the tone for the Royals to complete a three-game weekend sweep against the Chicago White Sox.

Royals and Huskers Might as Well Sing “We Are Family!”

Husker Day at the K is a good opportunity for two mascots to show their joint appreciation for how nice it is to know each other. Sluggerrr, the Royals’ mascot, and Herbie are fixtures in the Royals/Huskers annual reunion, which features trivial facts in between innings, showcases the Husker Fight Song and plays a version of “There is No Place Like Nebraska” without the words.

My favorite fact of the night was Nebraska winning national championships in football, volleyball, women’s track and field, men’s gymnastics and bowling. Someone nearby was impressed and then shocked when informed that those five sports have won a combined 26 national championships – eight in men’s gymnastics, seven in bowling, five in football, and three each in volleyball and women’s track and field. Let the record also show that Bob Devaney, as a head football coach and a director of athletics, had a hand in 17 of Nebraska’s national titles.

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