Kansas City Royals Countdown: Top 10 Moments of 2014 Postseason Run

5. Alex Gordon: ALCS Game 1 Hero

The opening game of the ALCS was one of the wilder games of the postseason run. That’s saying something. After blowing a 5-1 lead, the Kansas City Royals found themselves in their fourth extra-inning game out of five postseason contests.

It seemed the Royals’ luck might have run out after squandering a golden chance in the ninth inning. After three consecutive walks to load the bases with nobody out, Hosmer grounded into a fielder’s choice that saw Escobar thrown out at home. Butler grounded into a double-play to end the threat.

Wade Davis made sure the Kansas City Royals had a chance at redemption. He struck out the side on 11 pitches to send the game to extra innings. The Royals finally had the Orioles right where they wanted them.

Three pitches into the 10th inning, Kansas City was back on top. Gordon took Darren O’Day, who came on in the ninth to face Butler, deep into the right-field seats. The blast gave the Royals a 6-5 lead.

Perez followed with a walk before an Infante strikeout. Brian Matusz came on to face Moustakas. That didn’t end well for the Orioles either. On a full-count, Moose hit a two-run homer that proved important.

That’s because Baltimore forced across a run against Holland in the bottom of the 10th. The Orioles even had the possible winning run at the plate, but Nick Markakis grounded out to end the game.