Colorado Rockies Fans, Are You Worried About Carlos Gonzalez?

Apr 10, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Colorado Rockies left fielder Carlos Gonzalez (5) catches a fly ball in the second inning against the Chicago Cubs at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

Carlos Gonzalez has always been a streaky hitter, but right now he looks more like Charlie Culberson and less like a former NL batting champion. Are you worried about his production, or patient for his upcoming hot streak?

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Carlos Gonzalez has had a tough time of it in the early going this season for the Colorado Rockies. After a big series in Milwaukee to open the season, in which he hit a home run and three doubles in three games, CarGo has cooled off for the ten tilts since April 10^th.

Sure, CarGo has always been a streaky hitter, and Rockies fans are used to him going hot, and then cold, and then hot, and then cold, and then hot again. But considering the fact that he’s only getting older, and his troublesome injury history can’t ever be fully put in the rearview mirror (at least, not immediately after a season in which he missed 90 games), should you be worried about him?

After that opening series in Milwaukee (and before Wednesday night’s game with the Padres), CarGo has gone 5-for-40 (.125) with just one double, two walks, and one RBI against eight strikeouts in ten games.

He has undoubtedly hit some balls hard, and a .205 BABIP can’t stay that low all year. Plus, though he is striking out at an unfortunate clip during this slump (20%), he (thankfully) isn’t approaching Drew Stubbs’ whiff rates.

Nevertheless, no slump is a good slump – especially one that happens as the team is mired in its own losing skid, as the slump only seems to be more accentuated during the losses and men left on base.

Mark Kiszla has a good piece about CarGo in today’s Denver Post, and reading it twice through, I realized you could use it to argue maybe one of (at least) two points. One the one hand, you might read it and say, hey! CarGo is far better prepared this year than he was last year, by his own admission! He’ll work himself out of this slump because he’s in better shape and has lost weight, and he will be fine for the Rockies this summer!

Alternatively, I think it’s equally likely for others to read Kiszla’s piece and say, wait a minute… CarGo isn’t a kid any more, his body has changed, his metabolism has changed, and even though he slimmed down in the short run this offseason, he isn’t the same guy he was as he closes in on 30 years old, and he might never be that player again, healthy or not.

Both might be hyperbolic, so I apologize if you fall somewhere in the middle of those two, but you get my point.

So, I want to know how you feel about CarGo’s slump. Is it different this time around, because he’s getting older, he’s coming off tons of injuries, and he might not be the same 25-year old stud he was when he won the batting title?

Or is he just as valuable as ever, and will undoubtedly turn it around quickly with a hot streak starting (hopefully!) tonight?

Vote or die:

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