Fantasy Baseball: Is Kansas City Royal Alex Gordon for Real?

One time "can't miss" prospect Alex Gordon was all but forgotten at the end of the 2009 season. Gordon was the second overall pick in the 2005 MLB Draft by the Kansas City Royals and garnered hype comparable to that of Bryce Harper of the Washington Nationals.

Gordon would go on to absolutely crush in Double-A Wichita for the Royals, with 29 home runs, 101 RBI and 22 stolen bases during his time down on the farm. His incredible minor league stat line prompted the Royals to call him up on August 2nd, 2007.

Gordon would struggle in his first MLB game against Curt Schilling and the Boston Red Sox, which would only be the beginning of the third basemen's rough start to his major league career.

Though Gordon would eventually fizzle out with the Royals and even get sent down to to the minors in 2009, the former blue-chipper made his comeback in 2010, posting numbers similar to his time in Wichita back in 2006.

His comeback would come full circle this year, with the new left fielder finally living up to his 2005 hype. Gordon would end April with a .339 average and 19 RBI, leading many to wonder if the Alex Gordon fantasy managers had hoped for in 2006 had finally arrived.

The home runs have cooled off since April ended, but his RBI total has remained impressive despite the Royals' offensive woes. He's also batting .281 as of today.

Gordon is well on his way to resurrecting his career as well as his fantasy value this season, but some wonder if this can continue given the long history of struggles for the former Nebraska Cornhusker.

As the season nears its halfway point, Gordon has proven he can sustain a high level of play. There's still plenty of baseball to be played, and if you're a Gordon owner, hold onto him.

Too often fantasy baseball owners look to the past and say, "If he hasn't done this in the past, then he can't keep this up now." If that was a universally true statement, how do you explain Jose Bautista and Carlos Gonzalez?

Gordon has burned his fair share of fantasy managers over the years, but this year he'll finally reward the ones bold enough to believe in him.