The Cleveland Indians made a move to bolster their outfield by signing former Colorado Rockies outfielder and three-time All-Star Carlos Gonzalez.
It is not a secret that the outfield of the Cleveland Indians leads a lot to be desired. The team made a move to help remedy this situation by agreeing to terms with Carlos Gonzalez. Gonzalez is a three-time All-Star during his time with Colorado. In that time Gonzalez also had a Top 3 MVP finish in 2010. In addition Gonzalez also won a Silver Slugger in 2015.
Per Bob Nightengale it is a one-year deal with an April opt-out clause if he is not on the Major League roster. Jon Heyman reports that the deal is worth $2 million and has $1 million in incentives. If Gonzalez can perform this could be quite the bargain for the Indians.
The biggest concern when it comes to Carlos Gonzalez is the so-called “Coors Field Effect”. Gonzalez is not immune to the impact that playing in Coors Field had. The home/road splits for Carlos Gonzalez at and away from Coors Field are quite stunning.
Home: 668 games .323/.381/.592/.974 176 doubles, 29 triples, 142 home runs, 497 RBI’s
Away: 664 games.251/.307/.420/.728 123 doubles, 11 triples, 89 home runs, 278 RBI’s
Taking a closer look at how Carlos Gonzalez in Cleveland and two other American League Central parks is encouraging.
Progressive Field: 8 games .281/.303/.406/.709 1 double, 1 home run, 2 RBI’s
Guaranteed Rate Field: 2 games .429/.429/.429/.857
Comerica Park: 6 games .435/.458/.652/1.111 2 doubles, 1 home run, 3 RBI’s
However there are two stadiums that Carlos Gonzalez has struggled in, Kaufmann Stadium and Target Field.
Kaufmann Stadium: 6 games .174/.208/.217/.426 1 double
Target Field: 6 games .174/.208/.304/.513 1 double, 1 triple, 1 RBI
Even if Carlos Gonzalez settles in the middle of the the better and lesser of his performances it is still an upgrade over several names currently in the Indians outfield. Cleveland is doing everything they can to upgrade their outfield and that includes taking a flier on a player like Carlos Gonzalez. Worse comes to worse the Indians move on from Carlos Gonzalez and are back to the drawing board.
