Why Red Sox Veteran Thinks He’s So Good In Platoon Split
People often joked that parents should encourage their left-handed children to pitch, but maybe it’s the southpaw fathers and mothers who should pick up a baseball.
Romy Gonzalez has remained a formidable weapon for the Red Sox in his limited role. The 28-year-old infielder has batted .340/.389/.641 in 103 plate appearances against lefties this season.
How did Gonzalez get so comfortable mashing lefties? He offered an interesting explanation to MassLive’s Christopher Smith.
“My dad’s lefty, so I took lefty BP my whole life and did a lot of work with him,” Gonzalez said.
His dad, Gus, was a former football player, and Gonzalez played quarterback in high school before focusing on baseball. Of course, he’s continued to train beyond family BP sessions.
“His preparation, it’s really, really good,” Red Sox hitting coach Pete Fatse said. “And I think he takes a lot of pride in being prepared for those situations, being prepared for those at-bats.”
Gonzalez credited right-handed teammates Alex Bregman, Trevor Story and Rob Refsnyder with assisting him. Refsnyder also excelled in a platoon, posting a .905 OPS versus lefties before going on the injured list earlier this week.
“Just feeding off each other and constantly talking about approaches and what to look for, whatnot,” Gonzalez said. “Yeah, those three guys and obviously our hitting staff’s great. So working with them has been huge.”
Smith noted that Gonzalez has MLB’s third-highest OPS against left-handers behind New York Yankees sluggers Aaron Judge and Paul Goldschmidt this season. It’s not a one-year outlier, as the right-handed Gonzalez batted .302/.362/.517 with his preferred platoon advantage last year.
Those results make Gonzalez a lineup lock whenever the Red Sox face a southpaw. That means he should start twice during Boston’s four-game series against the Yankees when Max Fried and Carlos Rodón take the mound on Friday and Sunday, respectively.