Álex González (shortstop)

A photo of Álex González.

Álexander Luis González (born February 15, 1977 in Cagua, Aragua State, Venezuela) is a retired Major League Baseball shortstop.

Playing career

González' speed and range have enabled him to make acrobatic plays, quickly drawing comparisons to Venezuelan shortstops like Chico Carrasquel, Luis Aparicio, Dave Concepción and Omar Vizquel. His defensive tools were so masterful that by 1999 he established himself as an All-Star. Gonzalez is considered a great fielding short stop who can make above average plays but at time struggles to make routine plays. Which is the reason why fans have referred to him as stone hands.

González is able to make some contributions on offense as well. He hits with considerable power by middle infielder standards, and is considered a good bunter. However, he frequently swings at pitches out of the strike zone, and this poor plate discipline combined with an inability to make consistent contact has caused many to see him as a limited hitter.

In 2001, he led all Major League shortstops with 26 errors.

His most productive season came in 2004, when he posted career highs in home runs (23), RBI (79), games played (159) and at bats (561).

Before the 2006 season, the Boston Red Sox signed González as a free agent to a one-year contract worth $3 million, plugging a hole in the starting lineup after the trade of shortstop Edgar Rentería to the Atlanta Braves.

González committed 32 errors in the last two seasons (16 each), compared to the 30 committed by Edgar Rentería in his only season with the Red Sox. González's signing with the Sox marked the second time he had replaced Rentería as the shortstop; Renteria had just left the Marlins for the St. Louis Cardinals before González joined the team in 1998.

On November 18, 2006, he signed a three-year, $14 million contract with the Cincinnati Reds. In 2008, an MRI showed that Gonzalez still has a fracture in his left knee.

When González was hurt in February, it looked like he'd be back in the middle of April. Gonzalez had surgery on the knee in July, however, and ultimately missed the entire 2008 season.

On August 14, 2009, González cleared waivers with the Cincinnati Reds and was traded to the Boston Red Sox with $1.1 million for shortstop Kristopher Negron.

Highlights

• Made the National League All-Star team in 1999.
• In 17 post-season games, hit .161 (10-for-62) with one home run and six RBI.
• González played an important role in the 2003 World Series against the Yankees. After going 1-for-13 in the World Series, he hit a walk-off home run in the 12th inning of Game Four to gave the Marlins a 4-3 victory and a 2-2 tie in the Series. The extra-inning happened because Florida's closer Ugueth Urbina blew a 3-1 lead in the ninth. Then in Game Five, González hit a two-out game-tying double and scored later in Game 5, another Marlins victory. González added an extra run in the sixth and final game, when he slid around catcher Jorge Posada, eluding him and brushing the plate with his left hand. Florida beat the odds with a 2-0 victory and won the World Series.
• Featured in Backyard Baseball 2001.

Offseason

During the offseason Gonzalez plays in the Venezuelan Winter League for the Leones del Caracas.

External links

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
• Yahoo Sports