BRADENTON, Fla. \u2014 The phone call from Ben Cherington was meant to reassure Nick Gonzales of his importance to the Pittsburgh Pirates, even after the acquisition of two-time All-Star second baseman Brandon Lowe.<\/p>\n
To Gonzales, it was unnecessary.<\/p>\n
The 2020 No. 7 overall selection \u2014 Cherington\u2019s first draft pick as Pirates general manager \u2014 has never been short on confidence, nor does he worry about outside noise affecting his preparation or play.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was definitely expressed to me,\u201d Gonzales said. \u201cBen called me and said, \u2018You\u2019re still really important to us,\u2019 and not to worry about anything that was going on. That\u2019s nice to hear, but he didn\u2019t even need to call me. I figured that I\u2019m important and I know the player I can be, so that\u2019s all I worry about.\u201d<\/p>\n
So, Gonzales isn\u2019t worrying about his new position, even if it\u2019s the talk of the baseball world this spring training. He\u2019s playing shortstop, where 19-year-old phenom Konnor Griffin, the game\u2019s consensus top prospect, already is being called a generational talent and surefire superstar.<\/p>\n
If that\u2019s bothering Gonzales, he has a weird way of showing it.<\/p>\n
Just as he embraced the addition of Lowe because it made the Pirates a better team, Gonzales is treating Griffin as a five-tool talent who could be a difference maker instead of a threat to take his starting spot.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was no negative reaction from me,\u201d Gonzales said of the Lowe trade. \u201cWe\u2019re here to win. If we win, everyone wins. Whatever they asked of me, I was ready to do. They said, \u2018You\u2019re still going to be playing second and short. Just be ready to play all three positions of the infield.\u2019 I said, \u2018I\u2019m ready to do whatever.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
That was Cherington\u2019s message. The Pirates believe Gonzales \u201cdoes some things offensively that are unique,\u201d from being aggressive in making contact to developing into a versatile defender who can play second base, shortstop and third base.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe biggest thing about Nick, we can go back to his amateur days in the draft, he\u2019s just always met the challenge in front of him,\u201d Cherington said in December. \u201cThis is an opportunity for Nick to continue to push for an opportunity on the major league team. We believe that\u2019s kind of what he\u2019s always done, and can see him doing that in any number of ways.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gonzales has set an example for Griffin, who was Baseball America\u2019s minor league player of the year and an MiLB Gold Glove winner in his first full professional season. At 6-foot-4, 225 pounds, Griffin is a towering presence over the 5-9, 193-pound Gonzales but has been shadowing him in drills since the start of big league camp. Gonzales knows that he might be serving as a stopgap at shortstop until the Pirates are ready to promote Griffin.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s great. I love that kid. He\u2019s a super-talented kid. Everyone can see,\u201d Gonzales said. \u201cHe\u2019s one of the most talented kids I\u2019ve ever seen. I help him out as much as I can. He helps me a ton. We\u2019re constantly pushing each other. I\u2019m excited for his future. I hope to help him as much as I can. I\u2019m just super excited for him. I can play wherever. If it\u2019s Konnor\u2019s time to come and they need me to do something else, I\u2019m ready for it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Griffin is grateful to have a veteran to learn from and lean on in Gonzales, taking note of his aggressive approach at the plate and how low he stays to the ground in fielding drills.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s done it at the highest level. He has that experience,\u201d Griffin said of Gonzales. \u201cHe\u2019s just a pro. \u2026 I learn a lot from him. He\u2019s been good for me. Every single day, I\u2019m learning little things from him. We do push each other. It\u2019s really fun out there working with him. He makes me better.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gonzales spent the offseason trying to make himself better after a season that started with such promise when he hit a home run on Opening Day. It immediately went downhill, as a left ankle fractured by a foul ball earlier in spring training was aggravated on the home run trot.<\/p>\n
After being sidelined for two months, Gonzales batted a respectable .260 but had a pedestrian .299 on-base percentage and .661 OPS. He had 18 doubles and three triples but only five home runs and 30 RBIs in 96 games, taking a step backward in most offensive statistical categories.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing in a boot and not being able to walk on my leg for six weeks was tough,\u201d Gonzales said. \u201cThere\u2019s nothing you can do to help the team. There\u2019s nothing you can really do, other than just get better. I was like, I can\u2019t walk around. I\u2019m scootering around. But I battled through it, overcame and feel like I\u2019m in a really good spot right now.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnfortunately, stuff happens. It\u2019s tough, but I\u2019m ready to get going. This is the best I\u2019ve ever felt, the best I\u2019ve ever been body-wise, swing-wise, everything. I\u2019m stronger, faster. I think this is the best version of myself.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gonzales implemented \u201ca little bit of tweaks here and there\u201d to put a greater emphasis on tapping into the power in his back leg. Through his first four Grapefruit League games, the 26-year-old Gonzales is batting .636 (7 for 11) with a double, two RBIs and a 1.394 OPS.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really difficult to change midseason, to make any adjustment like that, especially mechanically,\u201d Pirates manager Don Kelly said. \u201cTo see the way he was able to embrace that in the offseason and the way that his swing looks now, he did a fantastic job. It looks freer, he\u2019s barreling the ball up well and he feels really great about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gonzales called his transition from his natural position of second base, where he started 192 games over three seasons with the Pirates, to shortstop \u201ca great challenge.\u201d He has played 15 games at shortstop as a junior at New Mexico State, 57 in the minor leagues, nine in the Arizona Fall League and 30 in the majors.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not something I\u2019m not used to, so I\u2019m ready for the challenge,\u201d Gonzales said. \u201cThe ranging, throwing, being on your feet. You\u2019ve got to focus a lot more in early work on being light on your feet, attacking the ball, little stuff like that. It\u2019s different than second. I wouldn\u2019t say second is more laid back, but the throw isn\u2019t that long.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s too different. I like turning (double plays) from short because you\u2019re running towards first, so you can get some momentum behind your throw. At second, you\u2019re relying on your arm and the quickness of your transfer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gonzales will transfer teams when he plays for Mexico in the World Baseball Classic. It\u2019s been in the works since 2023, but Gonzales\u2019 family had to drive to Jalisco to get the birth certificates to prove his lineage, which traces back to his great-great paternal grandfather. Gonzales called playing for Mexico \u201can incredible honor,\u201d especially because he will be reunited with college teammates in Milwaukee Brewers shortstop Joey Ortiz and Los Angeles Angels left-handed pitcher Sammy Natera.<\/p>\n
With Lowe in front of him at second base and Griffin behind him at shortstop, Gonzales knows that this is a big spring for him with the Pirates, one in which he needs to live up to his draft billing.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing\u2019s changed. I still feel that I have not shown the player that I can be,\u201d Gonzales said. \u201cI\u2019ve shown glimpses of it, but I\u2019ve gotten hurt two years in a row. That\u2019s been frustrating. I haven\u2019t shown the true player that I am. I\u2019m definitely confident that I can do that and that I will be an All-Star, that I will be a really good major league player.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"BRADENTON, Fla. \u2014 The phone call from Ben Cherington was meant to reassure Nick Gonzales of his importance…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":493595,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[65],"tags":[363,99],"class_list":["post-493594","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mlb","tag-mlb","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/493594","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=493594"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/493594\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/493595"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=493594"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=493594"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=493594"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}