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Gordon lauds stellar pitching for turnaround

ST. PETERSBURG -- What's the main factor behind the Royals' stirring turnaround this month?

They went 8-20 in May, but since June 1, the Royals are 10-3 after Friday night's 7-2 win over the Rays.

"Pitching," was left fielder Alex Gordon's answer.

Hmm. Not timely hitting?

"No, it's pitching," he said. "Pitching has been keeping us in the ballgame the whole time. I saw the stat, 12 straight games with three runs or less. That puts no pressure on the offense at all. So it's pitching, absolutely."

Yes, but there have been some timely late-game hits.

"The reason we're getting those hits is because the pitching is keeping us in the games and giving us the opportunities to do that," Gordon said. "That's the real reason. If we're down 6-0, those timely hits at the end of the game aren't going to matter. So, yeah, it's the pitching."

Dick Kaegel is a reporter for MLB.com.
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