Erik Gonzalez Looking to Redeem Himself in 2020

As we await the start of the 2020 MLB season due to CoronaVirus concerns, we will take a look at every player on the Pirates roster and outline what they will bring to the table and projections for the 2020 season. I hope this brings some positive reading to the current situation and helps us all as we wait for baseball.

After the departure of Jordy Mercer following the 2018 season, the Pittsburgh Pirates were left with a hole at the Shortstop position. Their internal options included Kevin Newman, Cole Tucker, and Kevin Kramer but, then General Manager Neil Huntington was looking for an external option to take over. That is when he swung a five player deal with the Cleveland Indians that sent Jordan Luplow and Max Moroff to the tribe in return for two minor league pitchers and utility man Erik Gonzalez. Gonzalez was set to battle Newman for the starting Shortstop position in 2019 as he looked to lay claim to his first everyday starting job.

In the end, Gonzalez ended up winning the position and was named the Pirates Opening Day shortstop. While Gonzalez played some solid defense early in the season, his offense struggled as he was hitting just .213 by mid-April with just two RBI. Gonzalez would then hit his worst set back of the season when he broke his collar bone on a collision with Starling Marte that would put him on the injured list for over three months. It created an opening for Newman, who would go on to secure the starting job at shortstop for the rest of the season.

Gonzalez did come back in early August and served as a utility man for the Pirates off the bench and appeared at four different positions. He played both corner outfield positions as well as shortstop and third base over the final two months and his offense saw improvement by season's end. In the month of September, Gonzalez hit .322 with 1 home run and 4 RBI to give him some momentum as he headed into the off-season. Thanks to his strong final month of the season, his numbers jumped and he finished 2020 with a .254 average, 1 home run, and 6 RBI.

Gonzalez is slated to start 2020 as a utility man for the Pirates and has been working out at several different positions throughout Spring Training. He has taken reps at third base, shortstop, second base, and the corner outfield positions. Super utility players have proven successful in the Pirates organization in recent history, with guys like Josh Harrison and Adam Frazier each making their marks in that role, and Gonzalez is hoping to channel that success to hit the reset button on his Major League career.

If Gonzalez wants to get back to being an everyday starter, he is going to have to work on getting his offensive numbers up. While shortstops are more defensive minded players, a .213 average is not going to cut it as an everyday player. One thing that hurts Gonzalez is the fact that he swings at the first pitch of an at bat more often than not, swinging at the pitch 65.4% of the time in 2019. This means that he is not waiting for his pitch and instead is taking what the pitcher gives to him, which is a good approach some times, but not every single appearance. He hits the ball on the ground a lot, 58.7% of the time, and this makes him susceptible to being put away easier.

One positive of swinging early in the count is that Gonzalez is putting the ball in play and at least giving his guys a chance to move up and take extra bases. He doesn't strike out a lot and set a career low last season striking out just 23.7% of the time. Gonzalez has decent plate discipline, chasing 36% of pitches last season, and he should use that plate discipline more often to try and work later into the count so he can swing at his pitch rather than a pitcher's pitch.

The thing Gonzalez was known for coming to Pittsburgh is his strong defensive play at shortstop. He lived up to those expectations having a 92% success rate at shortstop while committing just three errors in 209.1 innings of work. When Gonzalez started moving around the diamond his defense followed in the positions he was familiar with, but struggled in new spots. He was perfect in five games as a starting outfielder committing zero errors, however, learning third base didn't come so easy.

In 16 games, 10 starts, at third base Gonzalez committed three errors in 107.1 innings played for a .927 fielding percentage. If Gonzalez wants to be a successful utility player, he is going to have to master defense at multiple positions to help the Pirates in many different aspects. Gonzalez will be competing for playing time with fellow utility player JT Riddle and defense is what is going to make one stand out from the other.

At the end of the day, the main goal for Gonzalez should be to stay healthy for an entire season in 2020. In his first four seasons in the MLB, he has only played more than 80 games one time and has bounced around between MLB and Triple A on a pretty regular basis. If he is going to make the impact he wants to make in Pittsburgh, he is going to have to do it by becoming a master of many positions and take full advantage of his opportunities when they present themselves.

Predition: .215, 1 HR, 23 RBI

I don't see Erik Gonzalez making too much of an impact on the offensive side in 2020, however, I think he could be a key defensive piece the Bucs can use throughout the season. Look for him to come in during late game situations as a defensive replacement to help sure up the Pirates defense. Offensively, I don't see Gonzalez getting a lot of consistent reps to get his timing down and I think the gaps in between at bats are going to negatively impact Gonzalez's season.

As of now, the season is expected to begin somewhere around May 25th. Until then, we will continue to look at the men who make up this year's team and their contributions in 2020.