Steve Webb
The story of the Los Angeles Dodgers of the last decade can not be properly told without the name of Adrian Gonzalez. The slugging first baseman came to the Dodgers at the height of his long career. He anchored the right side of the infield at Chavez Ravine from 2012-2017, which were among the most productive seasons of his long career.
Last week, El Titan sat down for a far-ranging discussion with the guys from the Bleed Los podcast, which is my go-to podcast for All Things Dodger. In a nearly hour-long discussion, Gonzalez talked with hosts Alonso and Juan about a host of topics, ranging from his MLB career to his future in baseball, to whether or not the addition of cabbage comprises the integrity of a taco (seriously).
So what has A-gon been up to since he last strapped them on for the Dodgers? Well, as most Dodger fans recall, his final season with the team was plagued by injuries and even though the Dodgers made to the World Series that year, Gonzalez wasn’t on the roster. He was traded to the Mets in the offseason and played one more year with the Mets in 2018. So is he retired? Claro que no!
“Going into Spring Training in 2019, I was doing the whole workout, staying in baseball shape, waiting for the right opportunity,” he said in the interview, which has now dropped on all podcast platforms. Opportunities did come A-gon’s way, but they weren’t quite what he was after at the time. “I’m the kind of person who loves my family, and I didn’t want to go play on the East Coast. I did that once with the Mets and that was really, really hard. So, I got some offers, but unfortunately, they were all from East Coast teams, so I turned them all down.”
A Fresh Start South of The Border
Gonzalez thought that might be the end of the road for him. But as one door closes, another opens. “Just as I was about to hang them up in September, I saw that Mexico qualified for the Olympics and the Olympics were going to be in 2020, and I thought it would be a great opportunity to play for Mexico in the Olympics and then retire after that.” Though Gonzalez was born in the good ol’ US of A, his Mexican roots run deep. In fact, he grew up in Tijuana, seeped in that rich border culture that is part American, part Mexican and all vibrant.
Of course, unfortunately for Gonzalez (and the rest of the world for that matter), the pandemic hit, and pushed back the Tokyo Games until late 2021. So what to do? How does this former MLB superstar, with over 2,000 hits and 300 homers on his resumé, stay in baseball shape until the Olympics begin? Enter Los Mariachis de Guadalajara, an expansion team in the MLB-affiliated Mexican leagues.
“So for me, it was a great opportunity to start a new story, set a new culture, and really connect with the Mexican fan base”
Adrian Gonzalez on playing with Los Mariachis de Guadalajara
For Gonzalez, it was a perfect fit. “A lot of the things people think about when they think about Mexico… Mariachis, charro suits, folklorico dancing, these things come from the state of Jalisco. So for me, it was a great opportunity to start a new story, set a new culture, and really connect with the Mexican fan base.” Of course, Dodgers fans remember clearly that A-gon’s walk-up song was none other than “Mariachi Loco,” so it only makes sense that he is now wearing the name mariachi on his new jersey.
Olympic Dreams & Nicknames
Gonzalez acknowledges that at the age of 39, he is not guaranteed a spot on the Mexican national team, regardless of his accomplishments north of the border. “It’s a really deep roster,” he says, “They’ve got a lot of really good players… It’s one of those things that if I make it, I make it, but if I don’t, I don’t”
During the interview, the former Dodger touched on a variety of topics, including where he got the nickname “El Titan”. Apparently, the Spanish language broadcaster for the San Diego Padres was in the habit of calling everybody a nickname of one kind or another. “He started calling me ‘the titan from Eastlake’ because where I went to high school, we were the Eastlake Titans. The second season, he dropped the Eastlake part, and just called me ‘El Titan’ and it just stuck.”
Astros* and Tacos
Also during the interview, he had some choice words for the Houston Astros* that you’re not going to want to miss. And as for the tacos? Well, let’s just say Gonzalez is a purist when it comes to his cuisine. “For me the taco is the carne asada taco, and the minute you put lettuce or cabbage on it, you’re scratched off.”
Hopefully, the taco vendors of Guadalajara understand how El Titan likes to be fed. Otherwise, they are sure to find out in short order. The rest of A-gon’s musing on food and baseball can be found on Episode 9 of the Bleed Los podcast, available on any podcast app or you can listen for free by following this link: https://anchor.fm/bleedlospod and look for Episode 9.
Good luck in Mexico, El Titan! Hope to see you in Tokyo!
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