CARGO SIGNS $8 MILLION, 1-YEAR DEAL
Gonzalez signs a one-year deal for $8 million to return for his 10th season with the Rockies.
Carlos Gonzalez, the Rockies’ three-time all-star outfielder, announces his return to Colorado — hours before the club announces his new contract.
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZ.» CarGo, being CarGo, just couldn’t wait for the official word that he was back in the fold.
The Rockies’ three-time all-star outfielder — officially known as Carlos Gonzalez — was signing autographs at the batting cages for jubilant fans Monday morning, hours before the club formally announced his one-year, $8 million contract. The deal contains no options.
“CarGo told me that he’s a Rockie,” manager Bud Black said. “He feels that this is his team. I think this is a great year for him to come back.”
Gonzalez is not scheduled to meet with the media until Tuesday morning, but Black is eager to get Gonzalez back in the lineup as soon as he can. Gonzalez is in good shape, Black said, adding that he expects Gonzalez to begin playing in Cactus League games “pretty quickly.”
“It’s a good thing that CarGo is back, in a number of ways,” Black said. “He’s going to add to our team, most importantly, on the field. I think what CarGo did the last six weeks of the (2017) season was more like CarGo, like you guys have seen in the past. I think he’s poised to have a good year. Time will tell, but I just sense that. … I think CarGo feels it, too.”
Added Black: “He’s a bat in the middle of our order, which I think we need, and he balances out with some of our right-handed hitters, so our lineup get a little deeper.”
Last week, when news first broke that Gonzalez was likely to return, his veteran teammates were thrilled.
“He’s a good player with a lot of ability. But also, I really enjoy off-the-field CarGo,” center fielder Charlie Blackmon said. “He keeps things light. He keeps things in perspective. He lets you remember that we’re playing a game and that it’s supposed to be fun. Especially when you’re down the stretch
and trying to make a playoff run, you need to remember that occasionally.”
Gonzalez, 32, spent the last nine seasons in a Rockies uniform, hitting 215 home runs with a .292 batting average and an .873 OPS (on-base percentage, plus slugging). His sweet left-handed swing netted him six seasons of 20-plus home runs, including 40 in 2015. He is a three-time Gold Glove winner and a two-time Silver Slugger.
The seven-year, $80 million contract extension he signed after the 2010 season came to an end last year, enabling Gonzalez to test the free-agent market.
The Rockies approached Gonzalez last spring about an extension worth as much as $45 million over three years, but he decided to look elsewhere.
But it turned out that the market was not kind to veteran free agents this season, leaving Gonzalez without a team until deep into spring training. It didn’t help that he was coming off one of the worst seasons of his career.
He slashed .262/.339/.423 with 14 home runs in 136 games.
Gonzalez, however, did have a strong final month of the season, putting up a line of .377/.484/.766 with 12 doubles and six homers from Sept. 1 through the end of the regular season.
“I just know that CarGo is a threat in our lineup, and the other side knows it,” Black said. “He’s still at a place in his career, age-wise and body-wise, where he can do a lot of things to help us win.”
To make room for Gonzalez on the 40-man roster, right-handed pitcher Rayan González was placed on the 60-day disabled list as he recovers from Tommy John surgery.