Gonzalez was optioned to Triple-A Columbus on Saturday.
Gonzalez hit .296/.327/.461 with 11 homers in .382 trips to the plate last season, making him a somewhat interesting sleeper over the winter. His follow-up act has been a big disappointment thus far, as he'll lose his roster spot after hitting .192/.213/.288 in 25 games. Tyler Freeman was recalled to take Gonzalez's place on the bench.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: Not in lineup
Rotowire
Gonzalez is absent from the Guardians' lineup Friday in Boston.
Gonzalez started four straight games against lefties but has now been benched in two of his team's last three contests with righties on the mound, as he continues to find consistent playing time hard to come by. Will Brennan will start in right field Friday.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: Swats first homer of year
Rotowire
Gonzalez went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in a 4-3 loss to the Tigers in the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader.
He took Matthew Boyd deep in the fourth inning of the matinee, giving the Guardians a 3-1 lead, but it was the last offense the team would produce all day -- including the nightcap, which they lost 1-0. It was Gonzalez's first long ball and first RBI of the season, and after going 1-for-3 in the second game, he's batting .156 (7-for-45) through 15 contests. The 25-year-old will need to start picking up the pace if he wants to climb out of the short side of a platoon in right field with Will Brennan.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: On bench again versus righty
Rotowire
Gonzalez is absent from the lineup for Monday's game against the Yankees.
Gonzalez has still yet to make a start this season versus a right-hander not named Logan Gilbert; he's been in the lineup twice against the Mariners righty, who has reverse splits. The good news is the Guardians have already faced five lefties, so Gonzalez has still played quite a bit. The bad news is Gonzalez is sitting on a .387 OPS in the early going, and Will Brennan is looking like the preferred option in right field against most right-handers.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: Making another start
Rotowire
Gonzalez is starting in right field and batting sixth versus the Mariners in the Guardians' home opener.
It didn't seem like a great sign when Gonzalez was on the bench in favor of Will Brennan on Opening Day. However, Gonzales has started six of seven games since then, including against a righty in Logan Gilbert on Friday. Gonzalez is off to just a 4-for-22 start this season but showed plenty of potential last year.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: At cleanup spot Tuesday
Rotowire
Gonzalez is batting cleanup for the Guardians on Tuesday night against the Athletics.
Gonzalez hit fifth and sixth when he was in Cleveland's lineup over the weekend, and now he'll jump to the fourth spot in the order Tuesday with the A's starting left-hander JP Sears. Will Brennan is sitting.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: Not in lineup against Oakland
Rotowire
Gonzalez is not in the starting lineup for Monday's game against the Guardians.
Gonzalez will be on the bench against right-hander James Kaprielian with Will Brennan getting the start in right and hitting seventh. This appears to be a platoon situation between the two outfielders to begin the year, and that obviously limits Gonzalez' value considerably, even if he performs well against southpaws.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: Starting in right field Friday
Rotowire
Gonzalez is starting in right field and batting sixth for the Guardians on Friday night at Seattle.
Will Brennan got the start in right in Thursday's season opener against the Mariners and right-hander Luis Castillo, and now it will be Gonzalez's turn Friday versus left-hander Robbie Ray. Gonzalez had a mini-breakout in 2022, but he appears to be situated in a platoon at the moment.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: Produces three hits in win
Rotowire
Gonzalez went 3-for-4 with a run scored in Sunday's 7-5 win over the Royals.
Gonzalez has fended off a challenge for playing time from Will Brennan with a hot bat lately. The former has gone 27-for-85 (.318) over his last 20 games to maintain a starting role, mainly in right field. Gonzalez's three-hit effort Sunday lifted his batting average to .295 with a .790 OPS, 11 home runs, 43 RBI, 36 runs scored, one stolen base and 26 doubles through 88 contests this season.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: Sleeper hitters for Week 25 (Sept. 19-25)
Rotowire
The matchups could be better, no doubt, but the bottom line is that Gonzalez is severely under-rostered at 47 percent, especially now that his power stroke is beginning to come through with four homers in his past 11 games. With all the scrubs I'm having to call sleepers this week, I can't afford to balk at Gonzalez's matchups.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: Possible waiver wire pickups
Rotowire
We've been waiting for Gonzalez's power to manifest during what's been an impressive rookie season otherwise, and it looks like it's finally happening. Four of his nine home runs have come in his past 10 games, a stretch during which he also has four doubles. His high-end exit velocities rank among the top 10 percent in the league, and because his strikeout rate is only 21 percent, it doesn't seem like batting average will be a major concern for him moving forward. Certainly in five-outfielder leagues, he's a must at this point, and it's not a bad idea to add him even in three-outfielder leagues. His matchups next week could be better, but it's hard to imagine anyone with his availability being any more appealing.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: Homers twice in win
Rotowire
Gonzalez went 4-for-5 with a three-run home run and a two-run home run in a 7-6 victory over the Twins on Friday.
Gonzalez powered his team to an important victory with playoff implications by launching two homers. He tallied five total RBI in the first multi-homer game of his career. Gonzalez has been a bright spot for the Guardians after Franmil Reyes disappointed the team with his performance before being let go at the beginning of August. Gonzalez is now slashing .296/.327/.474 with seven long balls in 253 at-bats in his rookie season.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: Delivers game-winning hit
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Gonzalez went 2-for-5 with a double and two RBI in the Guardians' 6-5 extra-inning win over the Royals on Monday.
Both of Gonzalez's RBI came on his one-out double in the top of the 10th inning, which proved to be the difference in the Guardians' one-run triumph. Gonzalez has stepped back into an everyday role in the outfield since being activated from the injured list Aug. 2, slashing .280/.309/.432 with three home runs, one stolen base and 12 RBI in 30 games over the past month.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: Sleeper hitters for Week 23 (Sept. 5-11)
Rotowire
Gonzalez has cooled of a bit over the past couple weeks, but his strikeout rate is still respectable and quality of contact still high. Don't be surprised if he launches a couple homers against pitchers like Kris Bubic, Daniel Lynch, Dylan Bundy and Chris Archer this week.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: Sleeper hitters for Week 22 (Aug. 29-Sept. 4)
Rotowire
The Guardians matchups this week -- which include pitchers like Spenser Watkins, Jordan Lyles and Kyle Bradish -- are decent enough for you to take a shot on a player who may finally be on the verge of meeting his power potential. In all, Gonzalez is batting .300 (27 for 90) with three homers in August.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: Possible waiver wire pickups
Rotowire
The Guardians clearly have faith in Gonzalez, choosing to DFA Franmil Reyes and option Nolan Jones right about the time he returned from an intercostal strain in early August, and seeing as he's hit .338 (25 for 74) with three homers since then, their faith in him appears to be justified. One area where the 24-year-old hasn't quite performed up to expectations is in the home run column, but he just hit his second in as many games Wednesday, perhaps marking the start of a turnaround. He's in the 91st percentile for max exit velocity and homered 31 times in 121 minor-league games last year, so you know it's in there. His lack of walks may limit his usefulness in points leagues, but in five-outfielder Rotisserie leagues, just pick him up already.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: Knocks homer in win
Rotowire
Gonzalez went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Tuesday's 3-1 win over the Padres.
Gonzalez opened the scoring when he took Padres starter Mike Clevinger deep to left field in the second inning. Since returning to action Aug. 2, Gonzalez has gone 24-for-70 (.343) while maintaining a regular role in right field. He's up to a .306/.332/.472 slash line with four homers, 22 RBI, 18 runs scored, a stolen base and 20 doubles through his first 50 major-league games.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: Slugs in home win
Rotowire
Gonzalez went 2-for-5 with two doubles, two RBI and a run scored in Wednesday's 8-4 win over the Tigers.
Gonzalez tallied two RBI doubles -- the first off Daniel Norris in the third inning and the second off Alex Lange in the eighth. The outfielder's power has surfaced of late with a .517 slugging percentage in 60 at-bats during his last 15 games. Gonzalez's walk rate -- which has been low all season -- has bottomed out as he has not recorded a single walk over 84 at-bats in his last 23 games.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: Swipes first bag
Rotowire
Gonzalez went 1-for-4 with a stolen base in Tuesday's 4-3 loss to the Tigers.
The 24-year-old rookie stole his first career base in the majors while extending his scorching-hot August. Gonzalez has hit safely in 10 of 11 starts since coming off the injured list at the beginning of the month, slashing .340/.340/.426 with four doubles, three runs and three RBI, but his 0:10 BB:K suggests a correction could be coming.
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Guardians' Oscar Gonzalez: Resting Wednesday
Rotowire
Gonzalez isn't starting Wednesday against the Tigers.
Gonzalez started the last four games and went 6-for-16 with a double, two RBI, a run and two strikeouts. Nolan Jones will shift to right field while Will Benson serves as the designated hitter.
