Stuck in an 0-for-24 rut and hitting just north of the Mendoza Line, Carlos Gonzalez took a two-day benching in stride. It sent him back to the video room. But he did not scout opposing pitchers.
The Rockies’ sweet-swinging right fielder, at heart, will never shed a cheery core of optimism. Gonzalez loves his swing.
“I don’t watch pitchers,” he said. “I watch myself.”
Two consecutive days outside the starting lineup is certainly a rarity for Gonzalez, a 31-year-old veteran slugger who hit 65 home runs the past two seasons. But his slump became too much to bear.