With just one more season on his current deal, some would think that the Colorado Rockies would offer Carlos Gonzalez a contract extension. Those thinking that would be wrong.
There’s no urgency among the Rockies to offer their 31-year old All-Star a new deal, with the current one good for one more season, making him $20 million in 2017. Gonzalez isn’t going to hit the 40 home runs he had in 2015, but healthy for another season, he has 25 homers so far, batting .298 with a .865 OPS, making the All-Star for the third time in his career, while the Rockies hope they have a bright future ahead of them.
Despite rumors about Gonzalez asking for a trade, he’s still here, unlike Troy Tulowitzki, who probably isn’t complaining while doing very well in Toronto. Gonzalez has said a number of times he’s excited about the young players the Rockies have and would like to stay on the team and help them develop alongside him. The Rockies, for now, seem to be undecided on whether or not they want to keep Gonzalez for a few more years, or finally move him before it’ll be too late to get anything for him.
There’s also another side to this. Gonzalez himself might be waiting to see how the Rockies do. He’s been with the team since 2009, and that was his only postseason appearance with the franchise, headed towards a sixth consecutive losing season. They’re 71-77 this year, on pace to win 48% of their games, which would be their best since 2010, so Gonzalez might be looking to see the Rockies doing a little bit better next year before he decides he’s willing to commit for a few more years. That’s before the price question comes into the picture.
The Rockies also have an issue with Gonzalez past injury. They could start playing him at more at first base, while giving their younger outfield crop of Justin Blackmon, Gerardo Parra and David Dahl more at-bats and time in the outfield. If he does hit free agency following the 2017 season, he’ll probably be one of the top hitters in the class, if his previous injuries don’t deter teams or cause his market value to drop.