Oscar Gonzalez, playoff hero in October, sent to Triple-A to 'reset'
CLEVELAND — Oscar Gonzalez was the Guardians' postseason darling last October. His SpongeBob SquarePants walk-up song essentially became the club's anthem in the playoffs.
He followed up a terrific rookie season in which he hit .296 with a .789 OPS with two walk-off hits in the playoffs, including the home run that sent the Tampa Bay Rays home in the American League Wild Card Series.
But his aggressive approach also left him even more susceptible to a backslide at the plate. The Guardians didn't want to change who he was and make him focus on seeing more pitches or trying to take more walks.
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In order for his ultra-aggressive attack to be successful, he'd have to control the strike zone well. It's always a needed attribute for a hitter, but perhaps even more important for one with Gonzalez's approach.
Gonzalez had success with it in 2022, but this season began on an entirely different note. In a semi-regular role in the outfield, Gonzalez hit just .192 with a .501 OPS in 73 at-bats. He had one home run, two doubles, five RBIs and 15 strikeouts.
As Gonzalez struggled, the Guardians felt it was time to allow him to get regular at-bats in Triple-A, away from the pressures of every plate appearance in the major leagues. And so the player who advanced the Guardians into the AL Division Series last October was optioned back to Triple-A Columbus before Saturday's 4-3 win over the Minnesota Twins.
"I think we felt like we might be doing Oscar, right now, a disservice by playing him sparingly, and just watching the way he kind of chased last night," Guardians manager Terry Francona said. "Last year, we called him up. He had a lot of at-bats under his belt, and he felt really good about himself, so we're going to helpfully get him going again as opposed to playing him every so often.
"It's almost like a reset because he doesn't have to look up at the scoreboard [and see his batting average]."
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The 2023 version of Gonzalez, as hitting coach Victor Rodriguez saw it, began to find himself stuck between being too passive in some situations and too aggressive in others, which led to him being one step behind.
"We saw a guy that came up last year and even though he didn't control the strike zone he was productive," Rodriguez told the Beacon Journal. "And at this level, you have to control the strike zone. … I think he found himself struggling because he wasn't getting his hits, and you can see a guy trying to do too much.
"When you play every day [in the minors], you're going to get that chance to know that if you have a bad day, the next day you're going to play, and it's all right. And you're going to get back on track."
Guardians view Gabriel Arias as 'too important to our future' to not get him at-bats
With Gonzalez working to find his swing and approach in Triple-A, right field will primarily be split between Will Brennan and Gabriel Arias. This spring, Francona noted the club wanted to get both regular at-bats off the bench. Now, they'll handle that spot in the outfield, with Arias also working in a utility role as needed.
In place of Gonzalez, the Guardians re-called utility infielder Tyler Freeman, offering them more flexibility.
"[Arias] is too important to our future," Francona said. "We've got to find a way to get him some more at-bats, so we'll work him into that mix in right field, too, along when he plays the infield."
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Gonzalez (once he can get back on track) and George Valera (once he's healthy and show he's ready to make the leap to the majors) could factor into the outfield picture in a major way down the road. For now, the two players the Guardians were keen on getting more at-bats have an open path to them in right field.
Ryan Lewis can be reached at rlewis@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Guardians at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/cleveland-guardians. Follow him on Twitter at @ByRyanLewis.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Guardians option Oscar Gonzalez to Triple-A, hope he can 'reset'
