Marco Gonzales

29-Year-Old PitcherSP

Seattle Mariners

2021 Stats

W-L

10-6

ERA

3.96

WHIP

1.17

108

Rest-of-Season Projections

W-L

ERA

WHIP

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2021 Fantasy Outlook

Gonzales parlayed the highest strikeout and lowest walk rate of his career into his best season ever. His resultant 20.6 K-BB% ranked 16th among qualified starters. While this is impressive, it's not commensurate with his elite ratios. Gonzales altered his pitch mix, throwing more cutters and sinkers in lieu of fewer changeups. It's unclear if the tweak is the reason or if it's a sample-size effect, but Gonzales' curveball, cutter and sinker all missed more bats. If he's able to maintain his strikeout gains, not only does that directly boost his fantasy production, but it also softens the variance he's experienced the past few seasons. In addition, more whiffs will offset the likely increase of his career-low 2.5 BB%. If the room wants to chase 2020's surface stats, don't get in the way, but if there's pause, don't hesitate to draft Gonzales. At worst, he can be streamed at home. Read Past Outlooks

RANKSFrom Preseason

#187

ADP

Overall

Dynasty

League Majors

Bats L

Throws L

40 Man Yes

Height 6'1"

Weight 199

DOB 2/16/1992

Born Fort Collins, CO

College Gonzaga

Drafted 1st Rd 2013 STL

Quality start despite loss

PSeattle Mariners

October 2, 2021

Gonzales (10-6) was tagged with the loss Friday against the Angels after allowing two runs on three hits and two walks across six innings, fanning five. He also hit a batter.

ANALYSIS
Gonzales had to settle with an unfortunate loss due to the lack of run support, but the veteran ended the season on a strong note since he recorded five straight quality starts. The left-hander, who posted a 3.75 ERA since the beginning of September, ends the campaign with a 3.96 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP across 143.1 innings (25 starts), and he's now posted an ERA below the 4.00 threshold in each of his last three seasons, all of them with Seattle.

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Pitching Stats

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2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2021 MLB Game Log

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2020 MLB Game Log

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2019 MLB Game Log

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2018 MLB Game Log

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2017 MLB Game Log

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Minor League Game Log

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Pitching Appearances Breakdown

Average Pitch Count

Last 10 Games

Last 5 Games

101

How many pitches does Marco Gonzales generally throw?

1-10

11-20

21-30

31-40

41-50

51-60

61-70

71-80

81-90

91-100

101-110

111-120

121+

1-10

11-20

21-30

31-40

41-50

51-60

61-70

71-80

81-90

91-100

101-110

111-120

121+

1-10

11-20

21-30

31-40

41-50

51-60

61-70

71-80

81-90

91-100

101-110

111-120

121+

What part of the game does Marco Gonzales generally pitch?

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

5th

6th

7th

8th

9th

Extra

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

5th

6th

7th

8th

9th

Extra

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

5th

6th

7th

8th

9th

Extra

% Games Reaching Innings Threshold

% Games By Number of Innings Pitched

Left/Right Pitching Splits

Since 2019

-9%

BAA vs RHP

2021

-13%

BAA vs LHP

2020

-25%

BAA vs RHP

2019

-17%

BAA vs RHP

	BAA	Batters	K	BB	H	2B	3B	HR
Since 2019vs Left	.265	444	72	17	110	20	0	15
Since 2019vs Right	.240	1277	246	87	282	75	5	45
2021vs Left	.210	150	29	5	30	4	0	6
2021vs Right	.242	435	79	37	95	29	2	23
2020vs Left	.269	71	14	1	18	4	0	1
2020vs Right	.202	199	49	5	39	8	0	7
2019vs Left	.302	223	29	11	62	12	0	8
2019vs Right	.251	643	118	45	148	38	3	15
More Splits→	View More Split Stats

Home/Away Pitching Splits

Since 2019

-2%

ERA on Road

2021

-1%

ERA on Road

2020

-8%

ERA on Road

2019

-1%

ERA at Home

	ERA	WHIP	IP	W	L	SV	K/9	BB/9	HR/9
Since 2019Home	3.87	1.13	202.1	17	8	0	7.5	2.1	1.3
Since 2019Away	3.80	1.26	208.2	16	13	0	6.3	2.4	1.3
2021Home	3.97	1.12	77.0	4	3	0	7.5	2.7	2.0
2021Away	3.93	1.22	66.1	6	3	0	6.0	2.6	1.6
2020Home	3.21	0.79	28.0	4	0	0	8.7	0.6	1.6
2020Away	2.95	1.01	36.2	3	2	0	7.9	1.0	0.7
2019Home	3.98	1.24	97.1	9	5	0	7.2	2.1	0.6
2019Away	4.00	1.37	105.2	7	8	0	5.9	2.8	1.4
More Splits→	View More Split Stats

Stat Review

How does Marco Gonzales compare to other starting pitchers?

This section compares his stats with all starting pitcher seasons from the previous three seasons (minimum 120 innings)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.

* Exit Velocity, Barrels/BBE %, Balls Hit 95+ MPH %, and Spin Rate are benchmarked against 2019 data (min 120 IP). See here for more exit velocity/barrels stats plus an explanation of current limitations with that data set.

K/BB

2.57

K/9

6.8

BB/9

2.6

HR/9

1.8

Fastball

88.4 mph

ERA

3.96

WHIP

1.17

BABIP

.245

GB/FB

0.75

Left On Base

81.5%

Exit Velocity

80.2 mph

Barrels/BBE

7.2%

Spin Rate

2163 rpm

Balls Hit 95+ MPH

22.9%

Swinging Strike

9.4%

Advanced Pitching Stats

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Defensive Stats

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Stats Vs Today's Lineup

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Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Marco Gonzales

MLB Betting: Friday Best Bets

27 days ago

Michael Rathburn kicks off the final weekend of the MLB season with his best bets for Friday's slate, including a look at the total in Miami with the Marlins and Phillies both tossing out strong pitchers.

DraftKings MLB: Friday Breakdown

27 days ago

Mike Barner offers up his picks for Friday night’s games, including Seattle outfielder Mitch Haniger, who’s in a good spot with his matchup with Jose Suarez.

MLB Betting: Sunday Best Bets

32 days ago

Michael Rathburn likes Marco Gonzalez and the Mariners, who still have something to play for, vs. the Angels on Sunday.

Weekly Pitcher Rankings: Saving the Best For Last

33 days ago

Todd Zola ranks the starting pitching for the final weekend of the season, as Zack Wheeler has two more chances to embellish his Cy Young resume.

DraftKings MLB: Tuesday Breakdown

37 days ago

Mike Barner takes stock of Tuesday's DraftKings offering, recommending some Phillies bats against Chris Ellis and the Orioles.

Past Fantasy Outlooks

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

Gonzales illustrates pitching volatility. His ERAs the past two seasons are nearly identical: 4.00 in 2018 and 3.99 last season. The thing is, he was a significantly better pitcher two years ago but was unlucky. In 2019, the luck happened to reverse. To wit, Gonzales' 2018 xFIP was 3.59 with a 3.81 SIERA. Last year they were 5.11 and 5.08, respectively. Driving the difference was a drop in strikeouts combined with poorer control along with an uptick in HR/9. His 2019 K-BB% was 10.5%, down six points from the prior campaign. While variance affects all hurlers, it tends to manifest more on those with low strikeout rates and Gonzales' 17% mark was well below average. Now over three years removed from Tommy John surgery, Gonzales is durable, the prototypical innings eater. His volatility is a mixed-league risk, but his better skills at home render the southpaw an option in leagues conducive to streaming.

Gonzales enjoyed a bounce-back season with Seattle thanks in part to a new cutter that gave him another weapon to attack righties. Righties crushed him in St. Louis in 2017 to the tune of .346/.388/.566, so Gonzales added a cutter and that slash line improved to .266/.309/.418 last season. His 4.00 ERA feels out of place for a pitcher with a 1.22 WHIP and a 16.5 K-BB%. Gonzales does not have another level when it comes to strikeouts, but the improving walk rate is encouraging for him since he averages more than a hit allowed per inning. As long as he can limit his walks, the extra hits get offset. The innings spike looks greater than it was -- Gonzales logged 126.1 innings between the minors and majors in 2017 in his first season back from Tommy John surgery. There is some concern for a letdown in 2019, but Gonzales has job security and a favorable home park, so he's at least in the mix as a streamer.

Gonzales returned from Tommy John surgery last season, making 11 appearances (eight starts) with the Mariners after coming over from St. Louis in a July trade. The results were ugly, but the top estimators point to the lefty being at least a run better than his ERA would suggest (5.06 FIP, 4.46 xFIP, 4.48 SIERA). His strikeout rate was modest at 7.2 K/9 and Gonzales had trouble with the long ball (1.80 HR/9), but he posted a strong walk rate for the year (2.5 BB/9) and his numbers at Triple-A were solid. Gonzales was excellent in seven relief innings (24.1 K-BB percentage) and he finished strong overall, posting a 2.81 ERA in September. As things stand, Gonzales appears likely to serve as Seattle's swingman to open 2018. That puts him just an injury away from starts, and of course the top two arms in the Mariners' rotation (James Paxton and Felix Hernandez) have dealt with a slew of injuries in recent years.

After missing 2016 due to Tommy John surgery, Gonzales is unlikely to be back pitching in games until a month or two into the 2017 season. He will almost certainly spend time at Triple-A Memphis once healthy due to the fact that he is yet to impress in the majors and seemed to take a step back in the minors before he went under the knife. Over 14 starts with Memphis in 2015 (when he most recently pitched), Gonzales really struggled to retire the opposition, as batters hit .317 with him on the mound. He was much better at Triple-A in 2014, and it is possible his elbow was already an issue during his struggles in 2015. His stuff profiles better at the back of a big league rotation than in the bullpen, so he should continue to be developed as a starter, but given the Cardinals' rotation depth it is unclear when he will get a legitimate look in that role as long as he remains in this organization.

Gonzales’ proximity to the big leagues is the selling point and his lack of upside is a reason to look elsewhere in dynasty leagues. He will never be more than a No. 3 starter, and of course he’s far from a lock to actualize that ceiling. Assuming Carlos Martinez is over the shoulder issues that plagued him at the end of the year, Gonzales, Tim Cooney and Tyler Lyons are all on the outside looking in on the rotation heading into spring training. Gonzales had his own shoulder issues in the first half of last season, which may have contributed to his shaky run in the Pacific Coast League, but he will nonetheless be relying more on stuff and reputation than tangible success. Meanwhile, Cooney and Lyons can both point to successful, albeit brief runs in the MLB rotation last season, so Gonzales should enter camp as an underdog to serve as the first choice to fill in if someone in the rotation goes down with an injury.

Gonzales was terrific for the Cardinals when called upon in 2014, posting a 4.12 ERA in seven starts and striking out 39 in 43.2 innings. His xFIP of 2.94 shows just how good he was and going into his age-23 season, there's a lot for Cardinals fans and fantasy owners to be excited about. Arguably the organization's top pitching prospect entering 2014, Gonzales has a legitimate shot to crack the Cardinals' rotation in 2015 following the departure of Shelby Miller. He'll have to beat out fellow phenom Carlos Martinez along with oft-injured Jaime Garcia. Gonzales clearly has the talent to do so and if he gets the chance, he could be a great fantasy asset. However, the Cardinals could choose to develop Gonzales the same way they have Martinez, who was relegated to bullpen duties despite arguably being St. Louis' best pitcher last spring.

Gonzales was the Cardinals' first-round pick out of Gonzaga University in the 2013 draft. The lefty is a high-floor pitcher, but he doesn't have a ton of upside and could work his way to the majors late this season. In his first season as a professional, Gonzales posted a 2.70 ERA in 23.1 innings, striking out 23 while walking eight. It's an extremely small sample size, and the Cardinals will have a much better idea of what they have in the 22-year-old after a few months in Double-A, where he should start the 2014 season.

More Fantasy News

Goes seven innings in win

PSeattle Mariners

September 26, 2021

Gonzales (10-5) got the win in Sunday's 5-1 victory over the Angels, allowing one run on three hits and three walks with five strikeouts in seven innings.