Pittsburgh Pirates: A Look Back at Prospect Erik Gonzalez

(Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images)
(Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images)
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(Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images)
(Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images) /

The Pittsburgh Pirates have a potential new shortstop on their club for 2019.  Let’s take a look at who he was as a prospect.

Just a few days ago, the Pittsburgh Pirates completed a five player trade to bring in a new infielder and a couple of prospects.  The team sent out infielder Max Moroff and outfielder Jordan Luplow to the Cleveland Indians.  In return, the Pittsburgh Pirates got infielder Erik Gonzalez, and two pitching prospects in Tahnaj Thomas and Dante Mendoza. Gonzalez, of course, was the centerpiece of the trade as the Pittsburgh Pirates needed to bring in a new infielder after losing Jordy Mercer and Josh Harrison.

Gonzalez has been in the big leagues for parts of three seasons so far, originally getting a call-up in 2016. He was a prospect in the Indians system since 2008 when he signed with the Cleveland Indians.  Meanwhile, Thomas, from the Bahamas, ranked inside the top 30 on MLB Pipeline’s top 30 prospect list for the Indians.  The last piece, Mendoza, did not rank on any major site’s lists but, was just drafted in 2017.  So the Pittsburgh Pirates gave up two fringe major league players for two intriguing prospects and an MLB infielder.

(Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images)
(Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images) /

Top 10 Prospect

However, Erik Gonzalez may have more potential than originally realized.  At one point he was considered one of the better prospects in the Indians organization.  The first time he showed up on a top prospect list was at the end of the 2014 season.  After the season, MLB Pipeline ranked Gonzalez inside the top 10 for the Indians ranking at number eight. This was mainly because of his performance, but also at 6’3” and 185 pounds, he had the physical projection for his future.

He was mainly ranked this high because he had a really impressive 2014 season in the minors.  He started that year playing in Advanced-A ball.  Through the 74 games at that level, Gonzalez batted a strong .289/.336/.409 with 15 stolen bases.  He was then promoted to Double-A where he was even more impressive.  He batted .357/.390/.473 with six stolen bases in 31 games.  So his flash of ability to hit for a high average, get on base, and steal bases suddenly put him on the radar.

He entered the 2015 season still ranked as the number eight overall prospect for the Indians.  His 2015 was not as impressive as his 2014, but it was still solid.  He started the year in Double-A and played 72 games there, batting .280/.304/.421 with four triples, 18 doubles, and six home runs.

He then was promoted to Triple-A and finished the year playing in 65 games.  In those 65 games, he saw his batting take a big dip down to .223/.277/.311.  Oddly, he only struck out 18 percent of his at-bats, which is relatively average so it seems he was still making a lot of contact just not producing base hits.

(Photo by Rob Tringali/Getty Images)
(Photo by Rob Tringali/Getty Images) /

A Strong 2016

A somewhat average 2015 led to Gonzalez moving down to the Indians’ number 10 overall prospect by the end of the 2015 season.  Still, to be ranked number 10 in the Indians system at that time was very impressive.  They were loaded with talent in their system, so number 10 would have been top five in some systems. So to see that the experts at MLB Pipeline were still rather high on Gonzalez spoke a lot what they thought he could be in the future. Here is a scouting report from MLB Pipeline on Gonzalez entering 2016:

“Gonzalez has come into his own offensively in the past two years, demonstrating a better feel to hit as well as improved bat-to-ball skills. He generates sneaky power through physical strength and bat speed, though his barrel path is more conducive to hitting ground balls and line drives than home runs…” “An above-average runner, Gonzalez is still learning how to utilize his slightly above-average speed on the basepaths. His wheels also stand out at shortstop, where he shows impressive range and athletic actions as well as a rocket arm.”

Finally, in 2016 Erik Gonzalez would get his promotion to the big leagues. However, it would not come at the beginning of the season, but rather he earned it from having an impressive bounce-back year in Triple-A. He played multiple positions for the Indians, including shortstop for eight games, five games at second base, and 2 games at each of third base and right field.

So the Indians clearly felt he was more than capable of handling shortstop as his primary position being he played the most games there. Furthermore, the top 10 prospect batted .296/.329/.450 with 11 home runs, 31 doubles, and one triple.  Meanwhile, he kept his strikeouts controlled, only sitting down 88 times in 104 games.

(Photo by David Maxwell/Getty Images)
(Photo by David Maxwell/Getty Images) /

The Call

This allowed him finally to get called up to the big leagues for the Indians.  He made his début and played in 21 total games.  He made a good impression too, although he only recorded 16 total at-bats.  Gonzalez batted .313/.353/.313 with five hits, eight strikeouts, and two runs scored.

While it was a very small cup of coffee, performing well is better than not. This made Gonzalez become the Indians’ eighth ranked prospect once again. In 2017, he spent time between Triple-A and the big leagues once again, then finally stayed up with the team for all the 2018 season appearing in 81 games.

Why didn’t Gonzalez get a lot of time with the Indians?  Well, that is because the Indians have arguably the best shortstop in the league in Francisco Lindor.  This has been the problem for Gonzalez over the last few years.

The Indians infield has been loaded with talent between Lindor at shortstop, Jose Ramirez at third, and Jason Kipnis at second.  So playing time has been hard to come by for Gonzalez. For a young player, consistent playing time is the most important thing toward developing at the big league level.  The Indians best players were their infielders so it was hard to find Gonzalez that consistent playing time.

(Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
(Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /

Potential Starting Shortstop for 2019?

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This is most likely what led to him becoming expendable by the Indians this offseason.  Cleveland has plenty of infield depth between the big league club in Lindor and Ramirez, and one of their top prospects at Triple-A at third base.  Meanwhile, the Pittsburgh Pirates needed a middle infielder after the departures of Jordy Mercer and Josh Harrison.

When the Pittsburgh Pirates acquired Erik Gonzalez, many viewed it as them bringing in a utility player.  However, looking at his minor league track record there should be an expectation that he can be more than that. While he had some struggles it was often when he was promoted to the next level.  He always proved productive the next year at that same level.

All in all, he was ranked as a top 10 prospect for multiple years in the Indians system.  Kevin Newman had a chance to take the shortstop job last September and did not get it done. Gonzalez should be given a chance to be the everyday shortstop as he was once believed to be capable before finding himself in a logjam on the Indians’ depth chart.

Next. A Look at Thomas and Mendoza. dark

*For what it’s worth, Gonzalez played 67 innings at shortstop last year and grade out as a solid fielder with a 14.6 UZR/150 and one defensive run saved. 

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