While this offseason we’ve mostly been hearing about Miami Marlins players teams want to make a trade for, the team itself is also in the business of acquiring from others, believe it or not. One name that’s recently come up is Chi Chi Gonzalez of the Texas Rangers.
Actually named Alexander, the Chi Chi nickname (which is more like a name at this point) was given to him by his grandfather. Gonzalez is from South Florida, playing his high school baseball in Boca Raton. He made his debut for the Rangers two years after getting drafted (in 2013, debut in May 2015). He showed promise in his 14 appearance and 10 starts, going 4-6 with a 3.90 ERA, although his pitching is all over the place, walking 4.3 batters per nine innings while striking out just 4 per nine innings.
He had some impressive moments, like a complete game shutout against the Kansas City Royals, his first and only complete game. His debut started out nicely as well, going 5.2 innings against the Boston Red Sox without giving up a hit, the longest no-hit stretch to begin a career for a Rangers pitcher since 1992. But he was dropped back to the minors during the summer, playing just one game in July and one in August, before a long stint in mid September, all coming out of the bullpen. He’s still work in progress.
Right now, there’s nothing moving forward. The Rangers and Marlins are talking, but without significantly advancing on the Gonzalez front. The Rangers have been mentioned regarding Marcell Ozuna this offseason, but a lot of teams have that “honor”, and it doesn’t seem the Marlins are giving him up for anything less than half the kingdom, something no one is willing to give them.