March 18: The Twins announced that Gonzalez has been signed to a minor league pact and invited to Spring Training.
March 17: The Twins and right-hander Chi Chi Gonzalez are “working toward” an agreement on a minor league contract, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reports (via Twitter).
Minnesota GM Thad Levine was working as an assistant general manager with the Rangers when Texas selected Gonzalez with the 23rd overall pick of the 2013 draft, so that past connection could explain the Twins’ current interest in the 30-year-old. Gonzalez spent his first two big league seasons with the Rangers in 2015-16 before Tommy John surgery sidelined him for the entirety of the 2017-18 campaigns.
Resurfacing in Denver, Gonzalez has spent the last three seasons with the Rockies, though the team non-tendered him last week. Gonzalez posted a 6.10 ERA over his 184 1/3 innings in a Colorado uniform, and his low-grounder, low-strikeout repertoire didn’t mesh well with the thin air of Coors Field. While Gonzalez’s wasn’t particularly effective in road games either, opposing batters hit .304/.369/.511 over 410 plate appearances against the righty at Coors Field.
The Twins are in need of starting pitching depth, so a minors deal with Gonzalez would bring some MLB experience into camp. Even with Sonny Gray and Dylan Bundy acquired this winter, Minnesota still projects to have a young starting rotation, so adding Gonzalez even as depth provides some backup should the newer arms not yet be ready.
Was he ever a top prospect? Might be confusing him with someone else
He was a pretty big prospect with the Rangers. He was known as Alex Gonzalez then.
He was always known as chi chi..
He always had the nickname, but he was KNOWN as Alex.
Classic Twins Target. +5 ERA. LEs go!
Love no-nothing commenters who rip a minor-league signing.
The golfer? Oh, no, that’s Rodriguez…
The Twins are saying “Chi Chi, do you love me? Are you signing? Are you never gonna leave from beside me? Cause I want you, and I need you”
Can you please take Thad Levine back? I’ll pay Nolan Ryan not to kick his ass
Every time I see Chi Chi, I instantly have Les Nessman in my head 🙂
Les “I thought turkeys could fly” Nessman
Oh, the humanity! They were hitting the ground like wet bags of cement!
A classic!
I am a fan of Twin Chi Chi’s…
If this guy was able to be successful, he has a very marketable name.
Where is the pair of aces they need to live up to the promises…. Twins got a new stadium to build championship teams.. all they have managed to do is sell tickets.. good for their pockets bad for the fans who deserve what we paid for ..
This argument is getting old. You want to see what happens to the Twins without Target Field? Take a gander at the Oakland, or the possibly soon to be Las Vegas, Athletics. Plus, if you don’t live in or spend most of your money in Hennepin County, spare me the “what we paid for” line.
No kidding. First they have to find a FA who wants to come here, outbid the other suitors, and then hope the FA doesn’t make you regret paying so much. It is not like things can’t go wrong for teams that spend-recklessly. As a fan, I prefer the way the Twins do it. Building from within…
hahahahaha build from within… its a Myth… none of the World Champions did that.. take KC… who made their championship off the Grienke trade.. Look at all the Trades and free agent signings that propel every team to championships… its never they built from with-in.. The 1987Twins.. the 1991 twins… Free agents and Trades were central to the team.. Starting with last year.. go back and find me a team built from within… I looked.. and didn’t find one..
I don’t believe economic blackmail is legal.. the teams should shut up and pay their own way..
I know right! What was it .025 sales tax for 10 years. What’s more disturbing is the owner swears there is no budgetary limit but the two dimwits in the big office act like it’s their money and not the citizens of Hennepin county.
no what the Owners swore was in Public testimony before the Minnesota State senate… were they swore the increased revenues from any stadium would be for keeping its star players and adding more to build championship teams.. they provided false testimony to a government body… I was in the room for one of the people who testified to that… then the Minnesota state government passed a bill that allowed the vote… No State government interference on their behalf… No stadium … and lets not forget the cost of the government supported Tax free bonds , or the costs of infrastructure.. you know all the hidden costs… https://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/fiscal/files/97stadm.pdf
The Government welfare project for billionaires who kept the profit and stiffed the state and its people with its promises..
Lighten up, Francis.
I’d sign him just for the name.
Chy Chy Gonzaleez
Ummm I think Levine needs to find some home boy to carry his golf bags….I never saw Chi Chi get anybody out. I did see a Chi Chi hit a birdie tho