Yankees: Marwin Gonzalez’s return to Astros is fuel NYY didn’t want them to have

OK, we might be exaggerating a little bit, but anytime a rival contender brings back a familiar face who had their best years wearing that uniform, at the very least, it’s hardly comforting.

The New York Yankees have seen plenty of Marwin Gonzalez in 2021 after he signed with the Boston Red Sox this past offseason. But he was recently released, and now he’s going home to the Houston Astros.

You might be laughing at his .202 average and .567 OPS with the Sox — which, yes, is bad — but three of the four best seasons of his career came in Houston and one culminated in a World Series victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Remember his game-tying home run in Game 2 on the road when the Astros were down to their last strike? Houston stole that game at Dodger Stadium and flipped the series on its head after coming out with the 7-6 win in 11 innings.

Marwin Gonzalez rejoining the Astros seems like it’ll be annoying for the Yankees.

Though Gonzalez has little success against the Bombers in the postseason (6-for-34 with two doubles), he’s still a threat given his pedigree, defensive versatility, and ability to hit from both sides of the plate. Plus, he’s a fan-favorite in Houston! Don’t like that one bit.

A return to where the peak of his career took place could be all the difference, especially since Minneapolis and Boston aren’t exactly the most at-home places for international players. How many times over the years have we witnessed change of sceneries revive someone? Far too often.

For his Astros career, Gonzalez is hitting .264 with a .737 OPS and has played every position except pitcher and catcher. It’s unclear who he might kick off the roster because this is a minor-league deal and he’ll need to be with the team within the next few days to be considered for the postseason roster, but we’re sure the Astros can make it work with two more spots opening up come Sept. 1.

As for his career against the Yankees, Gonzalez is hitting .248 with a .729 OPS. Across 40 games, he’s belted six homers, driven in 23 runs and has scored 17 runs. It’s really not bad production given the decent sample size.

Here’s to hoping he doesn’t feel too at home with his new (old) team. After all, we thought we had the Astros right where we wanted them with all the Carlos Correa news. We want that to keep riding out.

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