Royals' sweep worth the wait

— -- KANSAS CITY -- Alex Gordon joined the Kansas City Royals organization in 2005 as the second overall pick of the draft. And then he spent the next nine Octobers in the exact same position most every Kansas City fan has spent the past 29 autumns: Spread out on the living room couch, watching oh, so many other teams spraying champagne on TV while wondering why the Royals could not even reach the postseason decade after decade ... after decade.

"I'd be thinking about what we could do to improve and get in that situation," Gordon said. "What can I do to improve? What can this team do to improve?"

It's a question asked many, many, many times by many, many, many Kansas City fans, but the Royals finally answered it. It's simple, really. Just build a team that can do everything right, from Web Gem-grade fielding to good starting pitching, to even better relief pitching, to swift, shrewd baserunning and occasional timely hitting.

The Royals did all that Sunday when they completed their division series sweep over the Angels, the team with the game's best record, with an 8-3 victory. And that means Kansas City fans can watch the American League Championship Series from Kauffman Stadium rather than from their couches for the first time since 1985. If they can find a ticket, that is.