Kansas City Royals Countdown: Top 10 Moments of 2015 Postseason Run

No. 2 Alex Gordon’s Game-Tying Homer

Gordon came through in several clutch moments during 2014 and 2015. His home run in the 10th inning of ALCS Game 1 helped shape that series. He had a spectacular running catch in Game 3 of that series. Gordon even made less-heralded plays, such as his run-scoring groundout that broke the tie in the Houston comeback.

This, though, is the singular moment that made Gordon a Kansas City Royals immortal. With one out in the ninth inning of World Series Game 1, Gordon faced Mets closer Jeurys Familia with nobody on and one out in a 4-3 game. During the regular season, Familia had saved 43 games with just five blown saves. His last blown save having come on July 30.

Gordon didn’t seem to care. He sent Familia’s third offering—a 97 MPH fastball right down the pipe—out beyond the center field wall. Nobody celebrated more than Hosmer, whose eighth-inning error had allowed the Mets to break a 3-3 tie.

Without the blast, the Kansas City Royals almost certainly don’t win Game 1. Even with everything else staying the same, the Mets are happy to take a split back to New York. The Royals might still win two out of three in the Big Apple, but that wouldn’t be enough to end the series.

Or, maybe the victory gives the Mets—who boasted a stellar starting rotation— the confidence needed to win the series. There’s no telling what would have happened without Gordon’s clutch homer. Even if he has struggled mightily in the seasons since, there’s no denying the impact Gordon made on the Kansas City Royals winning a World Series.