Oscar Gonzalez Heads Into The Regular Season On Hot Streak

Oscar Gonzalez has had a difficult start to Spring Training but has turned it around as the Cleveland Guardians prepare to open their season this week.

Oscar Gonzalez was the Cleveland Guardians playoff hero at the end of last season. 

He hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 15th inning in Game Two of the Wild Card Series against the Tampa Bay Rays to send Cleveland to the ALDS. SpongeBob also hit a walk-off in Game Three of the ALDS to give the Guardians a series lead at the time.

Cleveland's farm system is absolutely loaded with young talent who many expect to do well at the Big League level. However, Gonzalez wasn't one of those big named prospects that fans patiently waited to see make their debut.

Despite this, he would become a household name but by the end of the season after he finished the season tied for the third most home runs on the team (11), the third-highest batting average (.296), and the best walk-up song in baseball. 

If Guardians fans didn't know who Oscar Gonzazles was, they definitely knew who SpongeBob was. 

All of this has landed Gonzalez on the front of promotional videos and as one of the faces of the team. It's overall a lot of hype for a sophomore player, but he deserves it with the way he closed out last season. 

Small ball wins big games. CLE baseball returns April 7. #ForTheLand pic.twitter.com/ofI4NUKbBv

— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) March 21, 2023

However, Spring Training has not been as kind to the breakout right fielder. Gonzalez finished this spring slashing .240 /.283/.340 with an OPS of .623. Not horrible, but definitely not what everyone was expecting after how he looked at the end of last season.

Most of this production came from the final seven days of Spring Training when he hit .357 with a 1.071 OPS. This included five hits, one home run, and three RBI. The first three weeks of March were rough, but that final week can allow fans to breathe a sigh of relief. 

I believe this final week of exhibition games is what we are more likely to see from Gonzalez at the start of the season. Sometimes it takes players a little bit longer to get going coming into the season. That's alright if they eventually turn it on when it counts. 

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Cover Photo Credit: © Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports