Former big league player announced he is retiring, through a from the Orix Buffaloes of Nippon Profe sional Baseball, the club hes played with for the past two years. Yahoo Japan had on his retirement plans prior to the official announcement. After two amazing years in Japan, its time for me to say goodbye, Gonzlez says in his statement. Im incredibly grateful to my teammates, coaches, and fans for welcoming me with open arms. Despite the language barrier, we formed a bond with ease, making every moment on the field special. Playing here has been a life-changing experience, especially getting to share it with my family. Japan will always hold a special place in our hearts. Im filled with gratitude for the opportunity, the memories, and the friendships made along the way. Thank you for welcoming me into your world and for the endle s support. You have all my respect. Arigatou gozaimasu. Gonzlez, now 35, got his profe sional start when the Cubs signed him as an international amateur out of Venezuela and he made his minor league debut in 2006. In the 2011 Rule 5 draft, the Astros had the first pick since they were rebuilding at that time and lost 106 games that year. They used that first pick to take from the Mets but also apparently had their eye on Gonzlez. With the 23rd pick of the draft, the Red Sox took Gonzlez and promptly flipped him to the Astros for . The second of those pickups ended up being far more impactful for the franchise, as Cruz to sed just 76 1/3 innings for the Astros, posting a 5.31 earned run average over the 2012 and 2013 campaigns before going into journeyman mode for the rest of his career. Gonzlez would eventually become a solid multi-positional piece for the Astros, though not right away. In 441 plate appearances over 2012 and 2013, he hit just .227/.266/.323. That production translated to a 59 wRC+, indicating he was 41% below league average. The Astros didnt seem to mind much as they were still quite bad at that time, losing 107 and 111 games in those two seasons respectively. Gonzlez was at least able to provide them defensively versatility, spending time at second base, third base and shortstop. He was able to break out in 2014, hitting .277/.327/.400 for a wRC+ of 110. He also added first base and outfield to his defensive repertoire that year. He would continue to produce in roughly similar fashion in following seasons as the Astros emerged from their rebuild and became the perennial powerhouse that they still are today. From 2014 to 2018, Gonzlez got into 643 games for the Astros and stepped to the plate 2,265 times. He slashed Justin Turner Jersey .271/.328/.438 in that time for a 111 wRC+ while bouncing all around the diamond, playing everywhere except the battery. He also got into 30 postseason games in that time, including 18 as part of the 2017 clubs World Series run, though that title is now mired in controversy with the revelation of Houstons cheating scandal. from the scandal points to Gonzlez as one of the biggest users of the trashcan-banging scheme. His 144 wRC+ and 4.4 wins above replacement from FanGraphs that year are both easily the bests of his career, as he otherwise never topped 111 wRC+ or 1.8 fWAR.Though he later for the teams actions, the first position player on the club to do so. He reached free agency after 2018 and signed with the Twins going into 2019. His bat dipped a bit in his first year in Minnesota, at least relative to the league. His .264/.322/.414 batting line was fairly similar to his previous five years, but 2019 was the juiced ball season with huge offensive numbers around the league, so Gonzlezs production led to a 94 wRC+. It fell more significantly in the shortened 2020 campaign, with Gonzlez slashing .211/.286/.320. Going into 2021, the Red Sox gave him , hoping that his most recent performance was just a small sample blip in the odd circumstances of the pandemic. Unfortunately, that bet didnt pan out, as Gonzlez hit .202/.281/.285 before being released in August. He then returned to the Astros but hit just .176/.222/.441 in 14 games for them down the stretch. He signed a minor league deal with the Yankees going into 2022 and got into 86 games for that club, but hit .185/.255/.321 in those. After three consecutive rough seasons in the majors, he headed overseas. He signed with the Buffaloes going into 2023 on a deal that paid him $1.5MM. He hit .217/.266/.385 in 84 games for that club last year. He returned for 2024 but dealt with injuries and only got into 23 games, per Yakyu Cosmopolitan . Gonzlez will primarily be remembered for that strong run with the Astros, which will provide fond memories to some fans while others will dismi s his accomplishments due to his involvement in the electronic sign-stealing scheme. Regardle s of how one feels about that, the record books have him with 3,882 plate appearances in 1,139 major league games. He collected 888 hits, including 183 doubles and 107 home runs. He scored 420 runs and drove in 415. He slashed .252/.310/.399 for a wRC+ of 94. FanGraphs considered him to have been worth 10.9 wins above replacement while Baseball Reference credits him with 14.3 WAR. B-Ref lists his major league earnings at just over $37MM, with Gonzlez likely getting that up to around $40MM with the money he made in Japan. MLBTR salutes him on his unique career and wishes him the best in whatever comes next. Omar Vizquel Jersey