It’s no shock that there was only one player from the Kansas City Royals represented in the American League MVP voting. However, if you were to step back a year and say that the 2011 version of Alex Gordon would be that one player, that would be a major surprise — and a welcome one at that. Gordon had a very solid year at the plate and finally took the step so many have been waiting for, and he was rewarded with three 10th place votes for the AL MVP, meaning he finishes with three total points — just above the Rangers Josh Hamilton and David Robertson of the Yankees.
Gordon broke through this season with a line of .303/.376/.502. He had 45 doubles and 23 home runs with 87 RBI, displaying the gap power that should eventually translate into consistent 30-plus home run seasons year after year for the Royals. In addition, he also stole 17 bases.
Considering that Gordon’s career average to this point was .244, this year represented an amazing turnaround. With this natural abilities and growing maturity at the plate, it’s clear that this might be the least amount of MVP votes Gordon gets for some time.