Black Sox Beat Writer
Chicago Sports Online
Luis González confounded the experts this week and decided not to opt out of the final three years of his $13 million-per-season contract.
Luis González
Those stats, of course, were well off his numbers from 2039, the team’s final season in Huntsville. In the hitting-friendly park in Alabama, he slashed .336/.386/.467, made the All-Star team and snagged the team’s Hitter of the Year award.
Despite the drop-off, his final numbers for 2040 weren’t terrible – especially in Black Sox Park, which proved itself a pitcher’s haven in its first year of competition.
So why not give free agency a shot?
“Well, for one thing, I kind of like it here,” González said. “The clubhouse is great – my teammates are great, and management is … well, goofy, but not malevolent.”
BBA Weekly columnist Malcolm Wilkes offered another opinion, though.
“Well, if you talk to the folks over at the BBA Scouting Consortium, they’ll tell you that González’s skills are starting to slip a little – his fielding was the weak link in that infield last year, even though he shifted over to third,” Wilkes said.
“They dinged his overall rating from a 55 to a 50 mid-season. My guess is that Luis knew that and figured he wouldn’t be able to replicate that $13 million a year in free agency.”
Front office sources said the team was mildly disappointed that González opted to stay put – but only mildly.
“It would have been nice to have another $13 million available for free agency,” the source said. “But Luis is still a productive player, and he’ll definitely be a lineup staple again next season.”
This, of course, was unwelcome news to backup third baseman Victor Bedolla, who expected to step into González’s shoes next season.
“No comment,” Bedolla said when asked about González’s decision.
