Gonzalez slashed .282/.374/.397 over 91 plate appearances with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre this season before the Yankees elected to cut him loose. The 28-year-old outfielder last appeared in the majors in 2022, when he played in 98 games for the Giants.
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Yankees' Luis Gonzalez: Heads to Yankees as NRI
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The Yankees signed Gonzalez to a minor-league contract Thursday with an invitation to major-league spring training, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.
Gonzalez missed the first half of the 2023 season after undergoing back surgery in March and slashed .255/.355/.362 with one homer and six steals in 27 games for the Triple-A affiliate of the Giants once he returned to full health. The 28-year-old outfielder is a career .253/.328/.363 hitter over parts of three big-league seasons.
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Luis Gonzalez: Released by San Francisco
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Gonzalez was released by the Giants on Tuesday, Robert Murray of FanSided.com reports.
Gonzalez was pushed off the 40-man roster last month and will now head to the free agent market. The 28-year-old outfielder owns a career .253/.328/.363 batting line with four home runs and 10 stolen bases in 107 total major-league games.
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Giants' Luis Gonzalez: Passes through waivers
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The Giants outrighted Gonzalez to Triple-A Sacramento on Monday, Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic reports.
Gonzalez will remain in the Giants organization for now after clearing waivers upon being designated for assignment last week, but since he's now been outrighted for the second time in his professional career, he'll have the choice of electing free agency if he so chooses. If Gonzalez forgoes free agency, he'll report back to Sacramento, where he's accrued a .231/.344/.308 slash line through 14 games this season.
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Giants' Luis Gonzalez: Designated for assignment
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Gonzalez was designated for assignment by the Giants on Monday, Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic reports.
Gonzalez missed the first four months of the 2023 season due to a back injury and had gone 12-for-52 (.231) with zero homers in 14 games since returning to action at Triple-A Sacramento in late July. The 27-year-old outfielder is now off the 40-man roster.
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Giants' Luis Gonzalez: Activated and optioned
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Gonzalez (back) was activated from the 60-day injured list and optioned to Triple-A Sacramento on Monday, Amy Gutierrez of the Giants' official site reports.
Gonzalez has spent the entire season on the 60-day injured list, and though he's ready to play again following an extended rehab assignment, the Giants don't have a need at the MLB level for another left-handed-hitting outfielder. He appeared in 98 big-league games last season, so he could be back in the majors at some point over the final two months of the campaign.
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Giants' Luis Gonzalez: Moves rehab to Triple-A
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Gonzalez (back) played six innings in right field and went 0-for-3 with a walk and a run in his first rehab game with Triple-A Sacramento on Tuesday.
Gonzalez shifted his rehab to Sacramento after he went 2-for-11 with 1:4 BB:K in four games with the Giants' rookie-level Arizona Complex League affiliate. The Giants will likely want to see Gonzalez play full nine-inning games in the outfield on consecutive days before his activation from the 60-day injured list is more seriously considered. Gonzalez has been on the IL all season after undergoing surgery in the spring to address a herniated disc.
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Giants' Luis Gonzalez: Beginning rehab assignment
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Giants manager Gabe Kapler said Saturday that Gonzalez (back) will begin a rehab assignment soon, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
It's unclear exactly how long the Giants plan on keeping Gonzalez in the minors, but he seems to still be on track for a return in early August. Gonzalez underwent surgery in March to repair a herniated disc in his lower back and has been on the IL all season.
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Giants' Luis Gonzalez: Trending toward August return
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Gonzalez (back) is tracking toward being an option for the Giants in early August, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.
Gonzalez has been increasing the intensity of his workouts at the Giants' spring training complex and could soon begin appearing in rehab games in the Arizona Complex League. He is about four months removed from March surgery to repair a herniated disc in his lower back.
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Giants' Luis Gonzalez: Starts season on 60-day IL
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The Giants placed Gonzalez (back) on the 60-day injured list Thursday.
Gonzalez underwent surgery two weeks ago to address a herniated disc in his lower back, with the procedure carrying an estimated 16-week recovery timeline. With that in mind, the Giants' decision to have him start the season on the 60-day injured list comes as little surprise, given that he's on track to miss more than two months while rehabbing from surgery. The transaction frees up a spot on the 40-man roster for outfielder/infielder Matt Beaty, whom the team acquired in a trade from the Royals earlier Thursday.
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Giants' Luis Gonzalez: Getting spine checked out
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Gonzalez (back) traveled to Los Angeles on Monday to receive a second opinion from a spine specialist, Maria I. Guardado of MLB.com reports.
Gonzalez mentioned just over a week ago that he had noticed improvement in his recovery from the lower-back strain that has kept him from playing throughout the spring, so it's possible that his meeting with the specialist may be for the purpose of mapping out of his next steps rather than the result of any sort of setback. Whatever the case, Gonzalez is running out of time to prove his health during spring training, and unless he's cleared to return to game action next week, he appears destined to begin the season on the injured list.
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Giants' Luis Gonzalez: Undergoing surgery on back
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Gonzalez is undergoing surgery Tuesday to repair a herniated disc in his lower back, Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic reports.
The procedure comes with a 16-week recovery estimate, per Baggarly, which means that Gonzalez is sure to miss at least the first half of the 2023 season. He was bothered by back issues for much of the 2022 campaign and slashed just .254/.323/.360 across 350 plate appearances for San Francisco. At least the 27-year-old outfielder can now look forward to putting those back troubles in the past whenever he does finish up the lengthy rehab process.
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Giants' Luis Gonzalez: Aiming for Opening Day
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Gonzalez (back) said Sunday that he believes he can be ready for Opening Day, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Gonzalez struggled with back injuries last season and was diagnosed with a lower-back strain shortly after arriving to Giants camp this spring, but he's making steady progress now. Nonetheless, Slusser guesses that the 27-year-old outfielder will not be part of the active roster out of camp because of all the time lost. He'll presumably spend at least a couple of weeks rehabbing at Triple-A Sacramento.
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Giants' Luis Gonzalez: Out with back injury
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Gonzalez was diagnosed with a lower-back strain Sunday and is expected to be sidelined 4-to-6 weeks, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
The 27-year-old battled back issues last season and spent the final stretch of the campaign on the injured list with a back strain, so it's concerning he'll open 2023 in similar fashion. Gonzalez isn't likely to be healthy in time for Opening Day, and his spot on the major-league roster isn't guaranteed once healthy given the offseason additions of Mitch Haniger and Michael Conforto to the outfield mix.
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Giants' Luis Gonzalez: Placed on 10-day IL
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Gonzalez was placed on the 10-day injured list with a low back strain Saturday.
Gonzalez left Friday's game early due to a back injury, and he'll be forced to miss at least a week and a half. He'll be eligible to return during the Giants' final regular-season series, although it's not yet clear whether he'll be activated at that point since the team is unlikely to make the playoffs. Ford Proctor was recalled to take Gonzalez's place on the active roster.
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Giants' Luis Gonzalez: Plays through back issue
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Gonzalez (back) went 1-for-3 with two strikeouts in Friday's 5-0 loss to the Dodgers.
Gonzalez accounted for one of the Giants' three baserunners in the game. He missed one game with back soreness, but it's evidently a minor issue as he was able to replace LaMonte Wade (side) for Friday's game. Gonzalez has gone 5-for-20 (.250) across his last eight games, but he'll likely be limited to the strong side of a platoon in right field. He's slashing a middling .252/.322/.361 through 93 contests.
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Giants' Luis Gonzalez: Enters lineup Friday
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Gonzalez (back) will start in right field and bat ninth Friday against the Dodgers, Evan Webeck of The San Jose Mercury News reports.
The 27-year-old has been battling back soreness this week, but he'll join the lineup Friday after LaMonte Wade was scratched with side tightness. Gonzalez has a .189/.268/.243 slash line in 14 games since he was recalled from Triple-A Sacramento in late August.
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Giants' Luis Gonzalez: Dealing with stiff back
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Gonzalez isn't starting Wednesday against Atlanta due to a stiff back, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Gonzalez started the last four games, and manager Gabe Kapler said that the 27-year-old would have been in Wednesday's lineup if he was healthy. It's not yet clear whether Gonzalez will be available off the bench Wednesday, but he'll be able to rest Thursday since the Giants have a scheduled day off.
