The Orioles have released left-hander Luis Gonzalez. Jake Rill of MLB.com was among those to relay the news. He was designated for assignment yesterday when the club claimed righty Scott Blewett off waivers. Gonzalez is currently injured, meaning he can’t be placed on outright waivers.
It’s a bit of a heartbreaking development for the southpaw. Gonzalez was just added to Baltimore’s 40-man in November, just ahead of his 33rd birthday, which was in January. He had been grinding away for years, having made his professional debut as a prospect with the Phillies back in 2010. He has been in affiliated ball for most of the past decade and a half, but also had stints in Japan, Italy and Mexico.
Going into 2024, he was with the Orioles on a minor league deal. He tossed 60 innings over 44 Triple-A appearances. He allowed 4.50 earned runs per nine, which isn’t terribly impressive, but other numbers were more eye-catching. He struck out 28.9% of batters faced while limiting walks to a 4.9% clip.
The Orioles were impressed enough that they added him to their 40-man at the end of the year, putting him in line to finally make his major league debut at some point in 2025. However, he landed on the minor league injured list on April 11 with an undisclosed injury. As mentioned, injured players aren’t allowed to be placed on outright waivers. Once Gonzalez was DFA’d, it made it inevitable that he would be released.
It wouldn’t be a surprise if the O’s and Gonzalez quickly reunited on a minor league deal, as that often happens in cases like these. However, he will technically be able to speak to the 29 other clubs once he officially clears release waivers.
Photo courtesy of Kim Klement Neitzel, Imagn Images