Should The Guardians Call Up Oscar Gonzalez?
Flashback to October of 2022. Oscar Gonzalez has just hit a walk-off home run off Corey Kluber to send the Cleveland Guardians to the ALDS against the New York Yankees. Just a week later, he delivered again walking off New York giving the Guardians a 2-1 series lead.
At that time it was hard to ever imagine Gonzalez being sent back down to the Minors. However, that's exactly what happened less than a month into the 2023 season.
The Guardians originally decided to send Oscar down for a couple of reasons. They wanted him to get consistent playing time and everyday at-bats. That was something that wasn't possible with Cleveland playing Will Brennan in the outfield more and more with his success.
Cleveland also wanted Gonzalez to work on his swing-and-miss rate. Terry Francona said chasing at so many pitches was also one of the reasons they wanted to send him down. Ultimately, Tito said they wanted Gonzalez to get the bat going and call him up when he's hot like they did last season.
Well, if fresh off a 5-for-5 day and hitting the cycle isn't considered "heating up," then I don't know what is. Is it time for the Guardians to give the 2022 playoff hero another shot with the Big League club?
When Cleveland sent Gonzalez down back at the beginning of May he was slashing .192/.213/.288 with a K% of 20 in 25 games and 75 plate appearances. He also had a Whiff% of 28.4 which is well above the league average. The need for a change of scenery was clear for a player who hit .296 during his rookie season.
In Gonzalez's 43 games with the Columbus Clippers this season, he's hitting .269/.299/.468. The slash line has definitely improved from his early season woes in the Majors. Oscar has also driven in 36 RBI which is three more than last season in Triple-A in one more game.
However, the strikeouts, which is one of the reasons he was sent down in the first place, have only gone up. Gonzalez has a K% of 23 since being sent down to Triple-A.
There's no question that Oscar is hitting the ball better compared to the beginning of the season, but the swing-and-miss still remains a problem.
Does all of this mean he should get called up?
Gonzalez has proven that he deserves another look in the Big Leagues with how he's hit the ball. Calling him up while sending down someone such as Tyler Freeman and Gabriel Arias (strictly to get consistent and everyday ABs) may be worth trying for a week or two.
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