Carlos González: The heart of the Rockies

by Eric Garcia McKinley

A few days after Carlos González re-signed with the Rockies last March, he was welcomed back with a powerful embrace by Nolan Arenado. The bear hug on the couch inside the club’s spring training home was captured by the team’s social media department, providing a memorable image of the two stars.

CarGo and Arenado are the two most productive Latinos to play for Colorado. The image of the two embracing on the couch screams mutual adoration. There’s more to it than that. The excitement was largely due to  how unexpected CarGo’s return was.

In the moment it’s easy to see that Arenado looks up to González.

González, a native of Maracaibo, Venezuela, views his growth as a player and a person as a consequence of community rather than a single person.

When he first arrived in the Rockies clubhouse in 2009, González benefited from the collective experience in the room.

“I got a lot of information from” players like Todd Helton, Troy Tulowitzki, and Brad Hawpe, among others, he said.

“Now it’s a great way to give back and do the same thing they did for me,” he added.

The three-time All Star and Rawlings Gold Glove winner has played the third most games in Rockies’ history. He has seen a lot of players come through the Coors Field home clubhouse. He’s been there to share the knowledge he’s gained during his time with Colorado.

The most unexpected occurrence of his career may be his return to the team this year. With his return, the Rockies got back one of the best players in team history and an outsized presence in the clubhouse.

Back to the Future

After he signed a seven-year contract extension with the Rockies two months after star teammate Tulowitzki did the same, it appeared as though the Rockies would have their two offensive anchors and team leaders in place for a long time.

It didn’t turn out that way. González and Tulowitzki were both hit with injuries. They combined to play only 65 percent of the Rockies’ games from 2011 to 2014. While González hit .290 and made two All Star teams in those years, he didn’t play more than 135 games in any of those seasons. Those were tough years for the Rockies. Those contract extensions weren’t looking so great.

It became an early summer ritual for hear those two in trade rumors. Being constantly asked about possibly leaving town can’t be good for an individual or a clubhouse, but González held the players around him together while trying not to worry about what he couldn’t control.

Still, from a fan’s perspective, it always felt like González was the more likely player to be traded. Looking at overall talent, Tulowitzki was the better player at a more important position, shortstop. Tulowitzki had also been with the club longer. Tulowitzki was the one who was traded in July 2015.

González was finally healthy again. It was, in fact, the first of two consecutive seasons when he played in at least 150 games. He has never accomplished that feat in consecutive seasons.

He combined for a slash line of .285/.337/.552 in those two seasons while also hitting 65 home runs. For Rockies fans in particular and baseball fans in general, it wasn’t really a surprise to see him play so well. Everyone was reminded just how good he is and how much of a force he is on the field when he’s healthy. Not only that, but he barely turned 30. He seemed to have a lot left in the tank heading into the final year of his contract extension.

CarGo Returns

If González had predictive powers, he would have signed the reportedly “lucrative” four-year extension the Rockies offered him prior to the 2017 season, which would have prevented him from entering free agency for the first time. If the Rockies had those powers, they never would have offered it.

CarGo struggled mightily in 2017, hitting just .262/.339/.426 with 14 home runs in 136 games. He may have brought the same “magnetic personality,” but his bat was slower and he had trouble getting on base.

The Rockies’ outfield was jammed with Charlie Blackmon, Ian Desmond and Venezuelan Gerardo Parra while prospects David Dahl and Dominican Raimel Tapia wait their turn in Triple-A.

Not many expected González back in the Rockies clubhouse for 2018, regardless of his presence and nearly decade long history with the Rockies where only his mentee Nolan Arenado has made a bigger impact as a Latino player. It didn’t seem to be the right time, even if it was always going to be the right fit from the view of the clubhouse, if not the field.

Long time Denver-area reporters wrote paeans to González after the 2017 season because it seemed obvious that he wouldn’t return.

Then the free agent market tanked. Players who normally would have been received long-term contracts in early December languished and ultimately settled for less money, fewer years, or both. González, coming off of the worst season of his career, wasn’t getting much attention. Teams just didn’t have a reason to give out even a short-term contract to a 32-year-old outfielder who has lost both foot and bat speed.

The Rockies, however, knew better because they know González better. There are a couple sweet things about González anybody can see—that smile and that swing. But the Rockies knew  how much the rest of the roster valued his experience and presence.

Even though CarGo would tend to defer to group dynamics, his gregariousness in the clubhouse individualizes his leadership. (His singing makes cameos in the background of interview tape, drawing fond eyes and willing ears.)

So they brought him back for 2018 on a one-year contract worth $8 million. That doesn’t mean it’s the end of the story though. It doesn’t even guarantee a happy ending. A lot of Rockies fans now find their head and heart in competition. It’s emotionally gratifying to see González written in to the Rockies’ lineup. So far in 2018 it’s been something of an empty spot. His 2017 struggles neither look nor feel like an anomaly as he has started the season slowly, batting just .235 in 20 games after missing much of Spring Training. He has also landed on the 10-day disabled list.

I don’t know if the rest of the Rockies’ clubhouse feels the same internal tension. But it is clear that, for them, the emotional heart will be a tough opponent for any intellectual argument. That’s especially true for a player like Arenado.

It’s especially evident in that iconic image. Arenado, now in his fifth season, is on his way to being the best player in Rockies history.

Whether it was intentional or not, Arenado is a major beneficiary of González’s experience and a recipient of CarGo’s mentorship. But perhaps most notably, Arenado just may carry González’s Rockies legacy inside the clubhouse, whatever happens next.

Featured Image: Christian Petersen / Getty Images Sport