The front page of the Royals' website notes that Alex Gordon was just 5-22 prior to today's home run, his first of the spring, against the Rockies. Yay, batting average is still alive. I guess. And 5-22 is bad, I guess. Certainly not good. So it's good he got that homer.
While the home run is nice, and definitely welcome, to my eye Gordon has been having a nice Spring Training all along. After today's game, his triple slash line is .261/.514/.435. Yes, his OBP is .514. So while the singles haven't come, Gordon's actually been something of an offensive force this March. Dude has 10 walks. Lo Cain is second on the team with... 4.
I've made the joke a few times already, and I'm probably not done, but nobody has ever walked into Dayton Moore's heart. The Royals, no matter what they say, just don't value OBP, especially for non-leadoff hitters. Gordon has long been one of the few legitimately patient players in the lineup, a trait that does indicate some degree of polish at the plate. Nevertheless, Gordon's performance, even when playing through injury, has never been good enough. It's just a little thing, but the otherwise harmless blurb on the team website illustrates the still extant mental block to matters like this.
With Gordon, Butler and Kila all hitting close to one another in the middle of the Royal lineup, the team actually has the potential for an occasionally interesting inning. Of course, it'll be a treat to watch Gordon work a nine pitch walk, followed by Francoeur immediately swinging at the first pitch to ground out and end the inning.