The Yankees have claimed outfielder Oscar Gonzalez off waivers from the Guardians, reports Jack Curry of YES Network. There wasn’t any public indication that Gonzalez was removed from the Cleveland roster but they evidently tried to pass him through waivers without success. Cleveland’s 40-man roster is now at 39 while the Yankees are at 37.
Gonzalez, 26 in January, is coming off a dismal season in 2023. In 54 big league games, he struck out in 25.6% of his plate appearances while walking at just a 2.8% rate. He hit just two home runs and produced a batting line of .214/.239/.312 for a wRC+ of 49.
That was a big drop from a solid rookie season in 2022, wherein Gonzalez hit 11 home runs in 382 plate appearances. His 3.9% walk rate was still well below average but his strikeout rate was a more manageable 19.6%. He slashed .296/.327/.461 overall for a wRC+ of 125. He also became known to many baseball fans for using the SpongeBob SquarePants theme song as his walk-up music.
Despite that strong 2022 campaign, the poor plate discipline is an ongoing issue. He has swung at 49.1% of pitches outside the strike zone in his career, the highest rate among MLB hitters with at least 550 plate appearances over the past two seasons. In 2,734 minor league plate appearances, he has walked in just 109 of them, a 4% rate.
Gonzalez is generally considered a poor defender in an outfield corner and he’s not a huge stolen base threat, so the offense really needs to carry the profile. Chasing pitches off the plate and the resulting lack of walks have always been an issue for him. He hit enough in 2022 to overcome those faults but crashed back to earth in 2023. He clearly fell out of the plans in Cleveland, spending much of this year in the minors and now departing organization completely.
The Yankees are known to be looking for outfield help but Gonzalez is likely to just be a depth pickup. He still has a couple of option years remaining, which means the Yanks can keep him in Triple-A until they need him in the majors, either due to an injury or Gonzalez showing himself to be in good form. While struggling with the Guards last year, he spent a lot of time in Triple-A and hit .287/.323/.496 at that level for a wRC+ of 98.
The Yanks have Aaron Judge in one outfield spot but will likely pursue external additions to fill out a couple more. They have been connected in rumors to players such as Juan Soto of the Padres and free agent Cody Bellinger. How they fare in their pursuits of those players and others will ultimately determine how high Gonzalez is on the depth chart. He figures to be battling players like Everson Pereira, Estevan Florial and Oswaldo Cabrera for playing time as depth outfielders.
It’s wild that during the past few years, Cleveland had two different outfielders named Oscar who started out their careers red hot and then fizzled out
It looks like we finally got our leftfielder, it took a few years but we finally got him! No need for Soto anymore! Lol.
Let’s not forget the other Oscar G & all time great…
Gamble!!! Who also went from Cleveland to New York, then to the ‘77 Southside Hitmen.
One of my favorite ballplayers of all.
They don’t think it be like it is, but it do.
Shout out to another Oscar. Meyer. When he first came up, he was known as a hot dog. But Oscar was always frank and relished every opportunity he had.
Oscar was terrific for the Guards in ’22. I never sausage a guy!
Oscar was awesome in person
Thank you for bringing my name up. I definitely had the coolest Afro!
Best ‘Fro in baseball history. Maybe ever.
So long SpongeBob
14 months ago he nearly singlehandedly eliminated them from the playoffs.
hopefully it’s just for depth and won’t be the starting LFer… Please stop dumpster diving and just trade for soto already
Depth. The Yankees have several open 40-man roster spots. No guarantee he survives there once they need those spots.
he also has 2 option years remaining so they can stash him in the minors whenever they want
Sure, as long as they want him to occupy a valuable roster spot. What makes you think New York will want to do that when the OF-starved Cleveland team didn’t?
because Florial is out of options, Dominguez is out for half a season at least and Judge & Stanton get injured all the time. plus they had 3 open 40 man spots when they signed him.
Unfortunately, the Yankees simply can’t afford Soto due to the plethora of albatross contracts on the books (not to mention Hicks and Donaldson being paid to NOT PLAY for the Yankees). Unless Cashman can convince Preller to absorb DJLM, Stanton, Rizzo, or Rodon, which isn’t happening. Steinbrenner doesn’t want to go over the third tier of luxury tax to acquire one year of Soto.
Yankees can definitely afford Soto, and could afford extending him to. Donaldson is off the books (8 million buyout) and Hicks is 10 mil per year. Question is if Hal is willing to spend the money.
Yankees gross revenue in 2022 was $657M, up 36% YoY. I’m sure when ‘23s figures are released, there will be a similar gross revenue number, especially with the introduction of the YES streaming only option. They can afford whoever they want, it’s just a matter of the executive team deciding it’s worth the investment. Soto, if willing to sign an extension, is worth any collective group of prospects in their system. Which is why I am terrified of a run at Ohtani…
Good depth pickup
More potential than Bauers or Franchy, I like it.
Until you watch him, and he swings at 98% of the pitches thrown to him.
I’m hoping that this development along with the fact they’re listening on Clase means they intend to trade for at least one corner OF who is a genuine run producer. Gonzalez was not the answer, but here we have another bat from the CLE system that was just cast away with no clear return.
I would agree, even if they didn’t value Oscar highly they wouldn’t DFA him for no reason. They wanted that 40-man spot
I just don’t have any faith in the Cleveland FO anymore. SpongeBob will have a career year in 2024, and we’ll all be wondering why we gave him away for nothing.
You’re kidding right?
A little bit, but it’s been rough watching Jones, Benson, Yainer Diaz, Yandy Diaz, Harold Ramirez and Caminero do so well after being traded for peanuts or waived.
I agree, those were all misfires. Cubs also gave up on Ramirez though, interesting how he caught fire with the Rays. They seem to have a real strength for developing hitters that other orgs can’t. Gonzalez just doesn’t have the skill set for the majors IMO though
Yankees should trade for Clase and Bieber. An offer could start with Torres and some prospects. Cleveland has time to develop them. The only way they win the Central is if the entire division reaks.
They need Gleyber Torres like the Niagra Falls needs water. Typical Yankee fan thinking, completely misreading what their “lessers” want and need.
There were so many red flags that Gonzalez was due for a steep decline after his debut season. He’s a really rough outfielder defensively despite his arm. Doesn’t hurt to take a chance on his massive power but I’d bet against him.
There’s Florial’s replacement.
Floral is still on the 40. Yanks had 4 open spots to play with.
Not for long
They won’t dump him until/unless they acquire an additional CF option(s). Gonzalez is not a CF. He’s a Franchy Cordero type.
yes!! we got the 25 year old Dominican Outfielder everyone wanted!!!!
They tried to “sneak” a -1.4 WAR player through waivers.
Yankees FO: Hold my beer
Soto no longer needed
Nice #s in 22′
Nice little freebie. Glass half full boys
Good depth move for NYY. Nothing more nor less than that. If the fellas across the Whitestone did the same depth move, there would be a violent insurrection against Stearns.
I believe he’ll be included in the coming Suan Joto deal…
Seems hard to accumulate -1.4 W.A.R in only 173 ABs, but this guy, Oscar Gonzalez, managed it.
Just what the team needs, another k prone right handed bater OF
Great pickup.
Yankees are getting the pieces in place for that Soto trade.
You can tell who is 20 years old on here…….it’s the ones who only look at WAR as the end all.
Ha Seong Kim had a higher WAR this year that Soto or Tatis Jr…..and not a GM alive would put Kim on the same planet as the other two.
It’s a super cheap depth move for someone with potential. Why cry about it?
Obviously WAR shouldn’t be the end all, but bWAR tends to overrate defense. Soto had the highest fWAR on the Padres, which is more IMO
You have no idea how awesome the Cards
Infield is. Problem? Sure. One more ace would be nice. But if they don’t they will still make the play-offs. 2023 was an abomination. Trust me 2004 will be totally different. Maybe the Cubs and Reds will will make some moves to improve their talent but they are relying on young pitching that so far has only been so-so.
. Last y lke
Cleveland gave up on Jesus Aguilar, Will Benson, and Nolan Jones, too. How did that turn out, Antonetti?
Aguilar has been a journeyman since 2019
He hit over 30 dingers in a season after Milwaukee actually gave him playing time. Yeah, Willie Mays stunk in his final seasons, too, if that is your point.
“Since 2019”
One season wonder
@Windowpane
OMG, imagine grousing about losing Jesus Aguilar–JESUS AGUILAR!–when CLE had much better options at the time. As far as Nolan Jones and Will Benson go, imagine making final judgments without seeing how the players received work out, or making assessments on Jones/Benson’s futures a year after they’ve had wildly high (and historically unsustainable) BABIP’s..
Unfortunately, Cleveland never gave them a chance to find out if they could play. There is a reason the Guardians were not hitting HRs.
You wanted to see MORE of him striking out? He had 560 Plate Appearences and struck out 120 times and walked 20. Yes, he hit some homeruns and looked good before the league adjusted to him, but he was clueless in ’23.
Could he come back and become something great? Yes. Is he likely to? Nope.
I’m completely behind this move. There are a lot of players I would rather see on the 40 man than Sponge Bob. I’ll miss him, but I’m not displeased that he is gone.
(Yes, I said the same thing when Gio Urshela was dropped. I couldn’t have been more surprised when he hit as well as he did. You have to take the good with the bad.)
NYY needed a replacement for Jake Bauers. Thanks to Johnathan Rodriguez’s ascent, the Guardians had a spare windmill. The Guards can whiff on position player trades (Nolan Jones and Caminero, with the jury still out on Wil Benson), but it’s hard to project much success for Sponge Bob.
You must have missed the 2022 season.
Mlbtr fan –
He is NOTHING like Bader.
Cleveland’s front office has turned into a clown show.
I was listening to the MLBTR Podcast the other day and one of the guys said something along the lines of, “It is amazing how negative every teams’ fanbase has become.”
Why are you kvetching over Oscar Gonzalez? The guy never met a curveball outside the strikezone that he didn’t love. Is there a tiny chance that he may figure it out? Yes. But there was a chance Jake Bauers would have figured it out, too. Gio Urshela DID figure it out….for a while.
Every team loses players who go on to do well. Don’t lose sleep over it. Life is too short for that.
Sure, if we ignore all of their successful trades in recent years
Yes, like the Nolan Jones, Will Benson, and Jesus Aguilar deals
Clevinger, Kluber, Civale.. Yes there are recent bad trades (Aguilar is not one of them), but let’s not ignore the successes.
almost like there’s not a list of Kluber, Carrasco, and Clevinger deals, too. Aguilar was 1 season, Jones and Benson is recency bias. SpongeBob gave some great memories in 2022, but if you separate that from every other point of his career, this isn’t a big deal. Let’s see where the roster spot goes before you lose sleep over it.
Aguilar is a bit of a weird reference. That was a long time ago and he was never really that great.
There are better examples to support your point.. Yainer Diaz and Maton to Houston for Straw. Caminero to TB. Botched Bauer trade (though that probably isn’t entirely the team’s fault). Jake Bauers. Bell and Zunino signings were both big clunkers this offseason.
The Jones trade doesn’t look good now but they did get a meaningful prospect for him. Benson is probably a bench player but even if that is the case, potentially a valuable guy.
Of COURSE guys like Windowpane are going to have unfairly selective memories, they are persistent haters of all things CLE baseball-related. CLE doesn’t have the only self-loathing fanbase, but it’s definitely one of the most bitter, whiny, and unreasonable.
In 2018, Aguilar hit 35 HRs and had 108 rbi.
Clown response.
The Carrasco and Kluber trades are ancient history. I don’t think those acquisitions dispute that their front office has been pretty mediocre at building that team in recent years.
Yep, almost like they didn’t win the division in 2022 and would have gone to the ALCS without rain intervening. Again. Or how a team “mediocre” at building had the team in first place in late July this year despite losing an ENTIRE rotation and replacing it with young kids. Yeah, this is one sorry organization, let me tell you.
I know an agenda when I see it.
@ Windowpane
The laughable thing is thinking teams were banging at our door to get these guys. It’s hilarious, thinking we were sitting on a “goldmine” that no one else noticed. Nolan Jones didn’t even get to play until Colorado ran out of guys themselves. Benson was very carefully used by the Reds; he didn’t play every day. How about we wait awhile before we conclude that CLE is run by morons. Listening to guys like you, one wouldn’t think CLE has the 3rd best all-time record in the AL (behind only big markets NY & BOS) a standing that has only strengthened over the last decade despite all the absurd negativism.
Too many World Championships to count! Thanks for playing. NEXT!
Oscar will always be a fan favorite for his 2022 postseason performance. Sad to see him go but hopefully the Yanks can help straighten him out.
This is a solid claim Considering the upside He showed in 22. Hopefully he bounces back and gets his career back on track.
Another right-handed player. I would have kept McKinney
SpongeBob was great….while he was great. I wish him well and hope he gets his career back on track. A very entertaining player.
I am still startled that teams do not focus on winning. Everybody loses 60 games. What can we do to win 5-4 games. Maybe 4-3 games, it the difference beween a winning team and one who watches the playoff.
Nfor f
Mm
Solid Depth Piece for the Yanks
Hopefully, the Indians are making some roster spots available because they are about to trade a couple of pitchers.
Cleveland outed him quickly, after decent 2022 season. and clutch 2022 playoff stint.
He did not fit their push for low-strike out hitters.
Cleveland had like 18 HR across starting OF in 2023. Cleveland knows what they are doing….
Probably hits the ball really hard, Yankees are obsessed with exit velo.
Tom, he absolutely hits the ball hard….when he hits it.
It will be a better team when Steinbrenner sells his 70% to Zhong Shanshan, but seeing what the saudis did to the PGA, it wouldn’t surprise me to see one of them jump into the mix.
Strikes out too much, hits right handed and has defensive weaknesses. Sounds just like the 4-A players Ca$hman stashes at Triple A instead of real prospects.
Expect Gonzalez to appear in at 80 games fo the ‘24 Yankees once Stanton breaks down and whomever the Yanks bring in to be the primary center fielder hits under .200
Here’s Cashman’s big winter move.
I think the Yankees would be better off pursuing Bellinger even though he cones with inherent risks. He’ll only cost them money. Soto costs a fortune in talent AND money.
Oscar is a complete grouch
Hahahahhaah these are the only guys the Yankees can get lol no one wants to play for the Yankees. They will play for the Mets over the Yankees. Lift the shaving rule. It’s driving away talent.
If Trashman ever gets fired,, he can always fall back on his trade of dumpster diving!