After unsuccessfully trying to adjust to his new role as a backup infielder with the Phillies, Alex Gonzalez announced his retirement this morning. I remember when Gonzalez was coming up through the Jays' ranks and it seemed that everyone was talking about what a star he'd become. Looking back, I'd say that he delivered on that with his defense, but his offense never really attained the levels that were predicted. He was also projected to be quite a base stealer, but fell a little short there too. Still, Alex was an important core member of that young Blue Jays team who were trying to carve out their careers in the shadow of two World Championships. For a nice tribute to Alex, check out Bluebird Banter's recent profile in their Top 40 All-Time Blue Jays series.

This post was added on Sunday, May 21st, 2006 at 12:05 pm and is filed under The Dugout . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.