After wrist injury, Royals’ Alex Gordon concedes he has had a dreadful season

Alex Gordon did not mince his words on Tuesday afternoon. He did not sugarcoat. Instead, he opted for a blunt assessment of his 2016 season.

One day earlier, the Royals’ left fielder had landed on the 15-day disabled list with a fractured scaphoid bone in his right wrist. He could miss close to four weeks.

As he stood near his locker at Target Field, a reporter asked whether the injury, however unwanted, might offer a needed mental break after a sluggish start.

“Because I’ve sucked so far this year?” Gordon asked before answering his own question. “Pretty much.”

As Gordon spoke, he tapped into the most frustrating aspect of his injury, which occurred in a collision with Mike Moustakas on Sunday in Chicago. In 42 games this season, he is batting just .211 with a .319 on-base percentage and four home runs. His strikeout rate (30.1 percent) is pacing to be the highest of his career.

Six months after signing a long-term contract extension to remain a Royal, he has not equaled the production of his prime seasons. And now he must wait a month before having an opportunity to bust out of the extended slump.

“Obviously, I haven’t played the way I’ve wanted to this year so far,” Gordon said. “But the unfortunate part is, in baseball you always have tomorrow, and right now, I don’t have that. I just got to keep my head up. And hopefully when I come back, I’ll be feeling a little bit better at the plate and hopefully will help this team out a little bit more than I have so far this year.”

On Tuesday, Gordon said he could not identify the root causes of his problems. He struggled for most of April, batting .208 with 30 strikeouts in 77 at-bats. He could not pull out of the slump during the first weeks of May.

“It just hasn’t clicked for me yet,” Gordon said. “If I could explain it, I would probably be feeling a little bit better out there.”

For now, Gordon will attempt to be patient. He will spend the next week doing light cardio workouts and leg exercises while letting his wrist heal. He has been told he could be out three to four weeks — the prognosis that the Royals announced on Monday. He will be re-evaluated by the Royals’ medical staff in a week to 10 days.

On Tuesday, his wrist was wrapped in blue athletic tape. His return to the Royals’ lineup could depend on how fast his scaphoid bone heals.

“It’s frustrating,” Gordon said. “You try to be out there every day and help your team. The DL is never fun, as I found out last year. So I’m just going to try to keep my head up, stay positive and work my way through it. Hopefully (I will) come back fresh and ready to go.”

This story was originally published May 24, 2016 at 8:46 PM with the headline "After wrist injury, Royals’ Alex Gordon concedes he has had a dreadful season."