The Royals regrouped and rallied, then managed to hang on for a 9-7 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday night.
The Royals, up 2-1 heading into the fourth, saw All-Star left fielder Alex Gordon crumple to the ground while chasing a fly ball from Logan Forsythe. As he lay on the track, Forsythe raced around to tie the score with an inside-the-park home run. Gordon was carted off the field with what the club is calling a left groin strain. He received an MRI after the game and the results were not made available.
“He heard it pop, which isn’t good,” Yost said. “The doctors didn’t think it detached from the bone, which is a good thing. But it kind of took the wind out of the sails.”
Forsythe’s inside-the-park homer off Jeremy Guthrie along with Rene Rivera’s RBI single gave the Rays a 3-2 lead before the Royals scored five in the fifth. Kendrys Morales hit a two-run double in that big inning. Morales has just owned Tampa’s All-Star starter Chris Archer. Morales is now 7 for 11 lifetime with three doubles, a homer and four RBIs.
Jarrod Dyson, Gordon’s replacement, later hit an inside-the-park home run. It’s the first time there have been two in a game since 1997.
With the absence of Gordon, it is important for Lorenzo Cain to continue swinging a hot bat. After two days off, Cain went 3-for-4 on with a two-run homer in the third inning and an RBI single in the fifth. Cain is hitting .395 (30-for-76) with eight doubles, three triples, three homers and 15 RBIs over his past 21 games.