Gordon back to form with big blast for Royals

KANSAS CITY — After finishing July with a .206 average, things only appeared to be getting worse for Royals left fielder Alex Gordon. He fared no better in his first seven games of August, managing just three hits in 24 at-bats, as his average dipped below .200 and stayed there for two straight games for the first time since April.

But in the midst of a seemingly lost season, Gordon has started to turn things around. Already on an eight-game hitting streak, he stepped to the plate in the fourth inning of the Royals’ 8-1 win over the Twins on Thursday night with the bases loaded and two out. After taking two balls from Twins right-hander Tyler Duffey, Gordon fouled off a fastball right over the middle of the plate. Two pitches later, he got another cookie. Gordon didn’t miss — belting his third career grand slam to cap a decisive five-run fourth inning.

“When a guy is cruising like that, [you’re] just trying to put a good at-bat together,” Gordon said. “[You wait] for someone to step up. Fortunately, tonight it was me.”

The slam, which traveled 421 feet from the plate and left the bat at 102 mph, according to Statcast™, came in a wild fourth in which the Royals plated five runs on just two hits. After …

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