KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Royals were on their way to Sunday’s dramatic 3-2 victory over the Minnesota Twins around 4 a.m. That was when manager Ned Yost decided to give Alex Rios, and not Alex Gordon, a day off.
The question of who to sit among the outfielders was intruding on Yost’s sleep. He finally decided to play Gordon, and the decision paid off.
Gordon cracked a solo home run and robbed Trevor Plouffe of two hits with diving catches to support starter Danny Duffy.
“It just shows you how smart a manager I am,” Yost said with a laugh.