Colorado Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez regained his elite status this past season, but the 30-year-old slugger’s time at Coors Field could be nearing an end.
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Report: Rockies Place Gonzalez Back on Trade Block
Thursday, Nov. 12
Gonzalez is the Rockies’ unquestioned marquee player after they traded shortstop Troy Tulowitzki to the Toronto Blue Jays; however, the organization is reportedly open to dealing him as well.
According to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports, the Rockies are willing to shop CarGo, which is news one of the two-time All-Star’s friends believes he will be “thrilled” with.
While Heyman didn’t offer any concrete rumors regarding potential suitors, he did suggest that the Baltimore Orioles might consider taking a run at him since Chris Davis is a free agent.
Despite the comment made by Gonzalez’s friend, the Venezuelan superstar recently expressed his faith in the Rockies organization, per MLB.com’s Thomas Harding:
That’s why Tulo never forced any trades or I didn’t force any trades. We’ve been around some good people here, some good players. I promise you, if it was a different atmosphere or a different situation, we’d have been like, ‘I don’t want to be here. It’s not going to get any better.’ I believe in this team.
After an injury-plagued 2014 campaign that saw Gonzalez hit just .238 with 11 home runs and 38 RBI, he bounced back in a big way in 2015 to the tune of a .271 batting average, a career-best 40 homers and 97 RBI.
Gonzalez is a great hitter, but he is set to make $17 million in 2016 and $20 million in 2017 before becoming a free agent, according to Spotrac.com.
That is a hefty price for a team that is coming off a 94-loss season to pay, especially when it’s in dire need of pitching.
Since Gonzalez could potentially bring back franchise-changing value in a trade, it wouldn’t be particularly shocking to see the Rockies pull the trigger on a prospect-rich package.
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