The Boston Red Sox made a few roster moves Monday night that resulted in Marwin Gonzalez getting released.
The utility man was designated for assignment last week after becoming an offensive liability at the plate. Red Sox manager Alex Cora called it “tough,” but knew it was the best decision for the team moving forward.
Gonzalez batted .202 with two home runs, 25 runs, 20 RBIs and had a .567 OPS in 242 at-bats. He did show flashes of strong defense, but he just could not get it done at the plate.
Cora had high praise for Gonzalez after a July series against the New York Yankees that included a game-tying home run, and many thought this could be a turning point for him. Nothing seemed to come to fruition, though, and Gonzalez soon became unreliable on offense.
The 32-year-old was batting just .174 over his last seven games with the Red Sox with nine strikeouts in 23 at-bats.
So, yeah, not great.
Because Gonzalez cleared waivers once he was DFA’d, he was able to be released. The Red Sox will be responsible for the remainder of his contract.
Gonzalez only was signed to a one-year deal, and if there was no spot for him in the lineup, including a spot in Triple-A with the WooSox, it just made sense to not hold on to him any longer, especially with Kyle Schwarber making his debut for Boston after getting traded at the deadline, and the Red Sox claiming Travis Shaw off waivers to provide depth in the infield.
At the end of the day, Gonzalez was the odd man out on a team that is making a push for the postseason.
The Red Sox also optioned Franchy Cordero and Connor Wong to Worcester on Monday. It’s likely Josh Taylor will be reinstated from the COVID-19 related injured list, and Tanner Houck will be recalled for the doubleheader Tuesday against the New York Yankees.
It didn’t work out with Gonzalez, that much we know, but he hadn’t had a successful season since 2017 when he batted .303 with 23 home runs and 90 RBIs.
Now the Red Sox must shift their focus to a series against the Yankees that begins Tuesday. New York is just 2 1/2 games behind Boston for second place in the American League East, so it’s clearly an important three-game set for both teams.
