The Troy Tulowitzki trade changed everything. Before the night of July 27th, the Rockies were a team that was counting on some sustained luck and good timing combined with a fairly talented lineup to make the playoffs. They were in a variation of a win-now mode.
After that night, that was no longer the case. At that time, Jeff Bridich might as well have officially announced that they would look to the prospects that they currently have on the farm to succeed in the future; that the Rockies were going to begin to rebuild the franchise.
Even though Bridich won’t actually admit it, it has become clear over the past few months that the Rockies are in full-blown rebuild mode. Many within the Rockies fan circles agree that the Rockies shouldn’t have traded Tulo unless they were planning to blow up the roster and start fresh with a promising crop of young prospects.
Such a rebuild needs to include trading Carlos Gonzalez.
When healthy, CarGo is a legitimate MVP contender and he plays exceptional, gold-glove caliber outfield defense. He’s the only true five tool threat the Rockies have on the roster right now. But over the next two years, he is going to command $37 million. When combined with the $44 million Jose Reyes is owed over the same time frame (god forbid he’s still a Rockie come Opening Day) he’s a very expensive star player, especially considering his injury history.
If there was a guarantee that Gonzalez wouldn’t get hurt for the rest of his career, the Rockies would likely keep him. But there is no way to know if/when his next key injury will happen. At such a point, the Rockies will have missed out on getting any quality players in return for him.
CarGo’s trade value is sky high right now. After a historic finish to an otherwise miserable 2015 Rockies campaign, Carlos Gonzalez is a wanted outfielder. The market for talented outfielders is very much in the Rockies’ favor as multiple teams are in need of a high quality outfielder. Such teams like the Mets and Indians are in a position to compete for a championship in 2016 if they were able to acquire one final piece, something the Rockies cannot boast.
The Rockies need high quality pitchers in the system and on the big league roster more than they need an expensive, high quality outfielder. The franchise even has a surplus of good outfield prospects that are getting close to Major League ready. Prospects like David Dahl, Raimel Tapia, and Jordan Patterson will look to contribute in the Bigs in coming years. Carlos Gonzalez is replaceable and the Rockies already have his replacement in the system.
To be clear, the Rockies shouldn’t trade Carlos Gonzalez just to get him off the payroll. They should trade him if the price is right and they can continue to stock the farm with high quality prospects. Essentially they should trade CarGo for the same reason they traded Tulo: They received a very good return in 3 high-upside arms in addition to a stop-gap shortstop (and let’s not forget LaTroy Hawkins was a part of that trade as well). If the Rockies can get at least a couple of highly rated pitching prospects or MLB-ready pitchers in return, they should pull the trigger.
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The idea of trading Gonzalez is a hard one to stomach. Coming off of a huge comeback season in which he hit 40 HR, drove in 97 RBIs and slashed at .285/.337/.638 after the All Star break, CarGo reestablished himself as a force to be reckoned with in baseball. It’s understandable that Rockies fans would be hard pressed to support trading away that kind of production in the middle of the lineup. It would be traumatic, especially just ~6 months after the Tulo trade. But sometimes in the world of sports, fan trauma is necessary for team progress.
CarGo is a fan favorite. There is no getting around that fact. He has always treated fans with the utmost respect and with the exception of running to first base at times, he has always given the Rockies everything he had. He’s been an amazing asset to the Rockies and he’s been an absolute joy to root for.
As Rockies fans learned in late July, it’s hard to say goodbye to a player that has meant so much to the franchise. The same holds true for CarGo. It will be hard to say goodbye to the Rockies’ incredibly talented outfielder.
Sadly, the CarGo era needs to come to an end in Colorado to make a winning era of Rockies baseball possible.
The MLB Winter Meetings are right around the corner from December 6th through the 10th, so it will certainly be interesting to see if anything happens with CarGo during that time. He should attract a lot of interest and it will just be up to Bridich to pull the trigger. If he is offered a great return, he needs to do the right thing and finish the job he started in late July.
