MLB Outfielder Carlos Gonzalez to Find a New Home With the Houston Astros?
The Houston Astros might be the new home of outfielder Carlos Gonzalez, as per the latest Major League Baseball (MLB) free agency rumors.
According to Jon Heyman of Fan Rag Sports Network, the team has been in contact with the 32-year-old about a possible deal although nothing has been confirmed yet.
Gonzalez will be a perfect replacement for Carlos Beltran, who played for one final year with the Astros before his retirement, and will certainly have a lot to offer to the line-up, most important of which is to fortify the middle line-up by pulling double duty as an outfielder and designated hitter.
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Houston Astros is yet to make a concrete move at the moment though, and The Inquisitr says that this might have to do with the financial side of things. The team might be hoping for a contract that is more affordable than last year that Gonzalez had, which was at $20 million.
After all, they would not want to overspend in free agency especially since Gonzalez's numbers dipped last season with the Colorado Rockies due to injuries. He generated only 14 home runs and 57 RBIs (runs batted in) over 534 plate appearances, which is considerably down from 25 homers and 100 RBIs in the preceding season. This is a far cry from his 2015 performance, which saw him clock 40 homers and 97 RBIs.
Either way, Gonzalez's average in the 162 games he played is still quite impressive. With 29 home runs, 96 RBIs, and 98 runs scored in addition to a career batting average of 0.288, he will definitely be an asset to the Astros.
Apart from Gonzalez, the Houston baseball team is also reportedly taking interest in Jonathan Lucroy, who Heyman said will be more than capable taking over for Brian McCann every now and then. There have been talks between the two camps although there is no way of knowing how things are as far as the free agency deal is concerned.
