KANSAS CITY, Mo. � Alex Gordon can't stop hitting homers. The starting rotation can't stop tossing up strong outings. The Royals can't stop winning.
One question: Where was this in July?
The Royals on Saturday continued their dominance over the Minnesota Twins, rolling to a 10-0 victory on a idyllic night at Kauffman Stadium. Gordon finished 3 for 4 with two solo homers. Ian Kennedy logged eight scoreless innings as the pitching shimmered again.
Kansas City won its seventh straight and improved to 10-2 against the Twins this season. It also clinched its fifth straight series victory while moving to 33-17 against the American League Central.
If this was not apparent before _ and perhaps it was _ the Royals (63-60) are officially white-hot.
After struggling for much of this season, Gordon continued his torrid stretch. He extended his hitting streak to 11 games and notched his fifth homer in his last five games.
His first homer came in the bottom of the fourth off Minnesota starter Hector Santiago. His second came one inning later, during a four-run explosion in the fifth.
In all, the Royals piled up 17 hits and decimated Santiago for eight runs across 4 2/3 innings. Lorenzo Cain finished 3 for 4 with three RBIs. Salvador Perez clubbed a two-run homer to deep left field in the bottom of the fifth. Eric Hosmer and Cheslor Cuthbert also collected two hits apiece.
As the offense roared, Kennedy dazzled for eight innings, lowering his ERA to 3.59 for the season and 0.79 in his last five starts. Since June 30, Kennedy has yielded just three earned runs in 34 innings. On Saturday, his first 12 outs were recorded on fly balls and pop-ups.
In 15 games entering Saturday night, the Kansas City rotation had posted a 2.78 ERA. Kennedy added to the stingy record, while staff leader Danny Duffy awaits on Sunday, starting opposite Twins right-hander Ervin Santana.
If the Royals are to complete this improbable, historic climb to a playoff berth, it will likely come on the backs of their division foes. After Sunday, Kansas City still has 26 games against AL Central opponents, including Detroit and Cleveland, the two teams that remain above them in the standings.
For now, with Gordon back in the fold and the starting rotation in lockdown mode, the Royals are suddenly rolling.
