Of all the stories that have surrounded the 2012 Boston Red Sox, the Adrian Gonzalez saga has seemingly flown under the radar for the most part.
Saga, you say?
Well, that might be a bit dramatic. The problem is, Gonzalez has yet to truly perform in Boston in 2012. You can even make a solid argument that his numbers in 2011 were faulty due to the fact that he never produced in the clutch.
Think about that for a second.
When is the last time you saw Gonzalez come up with a big hit in the clutch for the Boston Red Sox? If you can’t think of one it is for good reason, there are none.
The Red Sox emptied their wallet to lock up Gonzo long term and thus far, he seems to be just OK for the Sox. While big-money contracts have flown around surrounding first basemen, it feels like an appropriate time to examine just where Gonzalez stands in comparison to his American League peers this season.
Those peers are as follows:
Paul Konerko, Chicago White Sox
Michael Young, Texas Rangers
Chris Davis, Baltimore Orioles
Billy Butler, Kansas City Royals
Prince Fielder, Detroit Tigers
Carlos Pena, Tampa Bay Rays
Justin Morneau, Minnesota Twins
Mark Teixeira, New York Yankees
Albert Pujols, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Adam Lind, Toronto Blue Jays
Justin Smoak, Seattle Mariners
Casey Kotchman, Cleveland Indians
Kila Ka’aihue, Oakland Athletics