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MLB Rankings: Baseball’s Greatest Hits of Week-19

By Bill Felber

LOS ANGELES, CA - AUGUST 04: Max Muncy #13 of the Los Angeles Dodgers in the dugout before playing the San Diego Padres at Dodger Stadium on August 4, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - AUGUST 04: Max Muncy #13 of the Los Angeles Dodgers in the dugout before playing the San Diego Padres at Dodger Stadium on August 4, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Dave Reginek/Getty Images)
(Photo by Dave Reginek/Getty Images) /

MLB Rankings: Greatest Hits in Week-19

10. Alex Gordon, 37 percent

It was the opener of a meaningless little series between the ne’er-do-wells of the AL Central. But the Tigers and Royals played that Thursday contest as if a playoff spot was on the line. In the end, Alex Gordon’s home run didn’t decide the outcome, but that did not detract from the hit’s drama.

Thanks to a five-run second inning, the Tigers led 6-5 when Gordon came to bat in the top half of the sixth inning. It had been a back-and-forth struggle not at all befitting the teams’ combined 77-155 records. Kansas City jumped in front with a pair of first-inning runs, Detroit returned fire with a five-run second, the Royals tied the game in the third and the Tigers regained the advantage with single runs in the third and fourth.

Gordon stood in against Tiger reliever Jose Cisnero, Royals Nicky Lopez and Nick Dini having opened the inning with hits. His home run put KC back on top 8-7 and also created a 37 percent swing in the game odds, improving the chances of a KC victory from just 23 percent to 60 percent.

The math didn’t hold because Travis Demeritte hit a game-tying home run in the seventh and because Jordy Mercer walked off the victory with a one-out, two-run blast.

But while Mercer’s homer may have won the game, by that point – runner on, just one out, the bottom of the ninth of a tie game – Detroit was already the statistical favorite by a margin of 71 percent. Gordon’s however, however futile it ultimately proved to be, statistically moved the needle more.

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