In early November, the New York Mets claimed left-handed pitcher Stephen Gonsalves off waivers from the Minnesota Twins.
The 25-year-old San Diego native brings much-needed depth to a Mets team that saw several of its high-end pitching talent traded away over the course of a year, including Justin Dunn, Anthony Kay and Simeon Woods-Richardson.
It wasn’t long ago that Gonsalves was a Top 100 prospect himself, ranked as the ninth-best left-handed pitching prospect in baseball heading into the 2018 season according to MLBPipeline.com. He was also ranked by Baseball America in their top 100 prospect rankings prior to the 2017 and ’18 seasons.
Gonsalves features four pitches in his repertoire: fastball, changeup, slider and curveball. His sinking changeup is considered his best pitch, and one that Gonsalves says he goes to about 35 to 40 percent of the time.
The six-foot-five southpaw made a name for himself in the Twins organization since being selected above slot in the fourth round of the 2013 MLB Draft. For his minor league career, Gonsalves has appeared in 121 games (114 starts), posting a 2.50 ERA, 1.106 WHIP and striking out 655 batters over 612.0 innings pitched.
Gonsalves was named the Twins Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2016, posting a 2.06 ERA (9th-lowest among minor league pitchers with a minimum 100.0 IP) over 140.0 innings, a 28.2 percent strikeout rate and a 1.021 WHIP.
He continued to climb the rungs of the Twins minor league system, posting a 3.27 ERA over 110.0 IP between Double-A and Triple-A in 2017, and a 2.76 ERA in 120.2 IP in 2018.
The ’18 season was also the year Gonsalves made his major league debut, getting called up in late August and debuting with the Twins on August 20 against the Chicago White Sox. Pitching in front of thirty or so friends and family who made the trip to Minnesota, Gonsalves lasted just 1.1 innings, having some control issues in his second inning of work.
In his brief major league career – which all took place in ’18 – Gonsalves appeared in seven games (four starts), posting a 6.57 ERA with 22 walks to 16 strikeouts. During the ’18 season, Gonsalves saw his fastball, which once sat in the low nineties, dip below 90 mph.
In the offseason, Twins pitching coach Wes Johnson made a visit to Gonsalves in San Diego to help clean up some of his mechanics. The pair worked on using his lower body more while shortening his arm action to work towards seeing a spike in velocity.
In spring training, Gonsalves’ velocity was back up around the 90-93 mph mark.
Along with building his velocity back up, Johnson and Gonsalves were focused on throwing more strikes, as his BB% nearly doubled from 6.8 percent in 2017 to 13.4 percent in 2018. Gonsalves mentioned how Johnson wanted him to simplify his delivery, keeping more square to the plate and utilizing his hips more.
Unfortunately, Gonsalves’ ’19 season would be a limited one, as he missed most of the season due to a stress reaction in his elbow. He appeared in just 13.0 minor league innings in ’19, striking out 21 while walking seven, though, he did hit 93 on the radar gun.
Feeling healthy and ready to contribute in any way that he can – be it as a starter or out of the pen – Gonsalves is eager to show up to camp in Port St. Lucie and be an asset for a club that has postseason aspirations. Gonsalves comes a bit full circle with his arrival to the Mets, as he and the team had a deal to be selected in the tenth round had he lasted that long through the Draft back in ’13.
This transaction by the Mets early on in the offseason could prove to be a shrewd move if Gonsalves can utilize what Johnson worked on with him in the offseason and throughout spring training. The upside is apparent when you talk about his size, being left-handed, his ability to miss bats and a player who has something to prove and is looking to rebound off a lost season in ’19.
I had the privilege of speaking with Gonsalves in mid-November, where we discussed the Draft in 2013, his tenure in the Twins organization and thoughts on being claimed by the Mets.
MMO: Who were some of your favorite players growing up?
Gonsalves: I always pictured myself as a two-way guy; I played a good outfield. Being a San Diego guy, I always loved watching Tony Gwynn and that swing growing up. Then that transformed into Adrian Gonzalez and I loved watching Trevor Hoffman pitch.
MMO: At what point during your development did you start honing in on pitching?
Gonsalves: I always realized that I had a good arm. I enjoyed throwing kids out from the outfield. I figured it was going to be my best chance to get to the big leagues throwing and pitching off the mound, which was probably during my sophomore and junior years of high school. I started throwing harder than everyone else and being six-foot-five and left-handed kind of tees it up for me a little bit.
MMO: Did you have any idea that the Minnesota Twins were looking to select you in the 2013 MLB Draft?
Gonsalves: Honestly, the Twins were one of the quieter groups. I had meetings with everyone; the scouts would come for the in-house meetings and introduce themselves. But the Twins kind of surprised me right on draft day.
They called me right before and were like, “Hey, we want you at this pick. What’s it going to take to sign?”
It was actually kind of funny, I had a deal in place with the Mets to get picked in the tenth round. It’s kind of funny how it’s coming back around. We had a deal in place for the tenth round in 2013.
MMO: Was there any type of adjustment period for you heading from high school to the minor leagues?
Gonsalves: Baseball-level, starting in the GCL and working your way up was all pretty similar to the travel ball aspect. But it was the first time moving away from my parents, having more freedom, and it was definitely different. I had to rely on myself and other players a little bit more to keep the housing clean and make meals for myself. It was fun.
MMO: For fans who may be unaware, what pitches do you throw? And what would you consider your most refined pitch to be?
Gonsalves: I have a fastball, changeup, curveball, and slider. Slider I developed within the last two years and it’s been really good to lefties. I would say my best pitch is either my changeup or high fastball. I’m one of the guys that has pretty good carry on my fastball so you will see my pitching at the top of the zone. But I’ll throw my changeup about 35-40 percent of the time.
MMO: You were named the Twins Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2016, after posting career bests in innings pitched, strikeouts, WHIP and hits-per-nine. Did you change anything mechanically that season, or was there anything you could pinpoint for your tremendous success on the mound that year?
Gonsalves: I think that was the year I learned how to throw my changeup a little bit more deceptively. In high school, I was a fastball/splitter guy, so I was really working on developing that changeup and I think that year [2016] it just kind of clicked for me.
I also had a little chip on my shoulder; I wasn’t happy with where they were sending me out of spring. I think it just lit a fire under me and realized nothing is going to be handed and I have to go out and work for it.
MMO: You made your major league debut at the end of August in 2018. What are your memories from learning you were getting called up to the day you made your debut on August 20?
Gonsalves: It was a good time! I was getting ready to start for the Triple-A club the next day. I didn’t get a call until around midnight, I was already in bed.
The manager called me and said, “Hey, you’re going to the big leagues. You’ve done this before, so you’ll be able to handle it.”
I told him, ‘No, this is actually my first big league call-up!’
He said, “Alright, well, good luck. Go get ‘em!” It was definitely an interesting phone call.
I called my grandmother first because I’m very close with her. She’s probably one of my biggest fans and that was a fun moment to share with her.
I had about thirty people come out to Minnesota from San Diego. Unfortunately, I only went 1.1 innings. But it was still a dream come true and I was happy I could share it with family.
MMO: I read an article from last year during spring training that Wes Johnson had visited you in the offseason to help with your mechanics and to aid in increasing your velocity back to where it once was. Can you talk a little about some of the suggestions Johnson gave you and how that benefited you?
Gonsalves: I definitely jumped up a bit in velo. We worked on just shortening up my arm action a little bit; I was always a long, lanky guy. My old delivery used to look a little like Madison Bumgarner’s long arms, kind of crossed body. We just wanted to simplify that down and it honestly got me throwing a lot more strikes. I think it was in 2018 that my walks spiked up a ton, so we were just working on keeping everything simple, square and using the hips a little bit more.
He suggested I was throwing with just my arm and there was a lot left in the tank, so we got into the legs a little bit. And I started throwing harder! I came back after rehab all last year, I pitched a couple of outings in Double-A. In my first outing there I was 93-95 mph, so it’s definitely there with all the things he taught me.
I have a good pitching coach here in San Diego who works with a lot of big-league guys, so I’m looking forward to getting back into it.
MMO: You mentioned your rehab after being shut down with an elbow injury last year. How was the overall rehab process for you, and how are you feeling today?
Gonsalves: I’m feeling healthy. Like I said, I was able to finish the season in Double-A in the bullpen, but it was a long rehab process. I started out with a little flexor strain and I wanted to keep pitching through it just to stay out on the field because I knew I had a good shot out of spring training to make the big-league club. I just kind of kept throwing through it.
Then I ended up getting a little stress reaction in my elbow and that just caused me to sit out for 8-to-10 weeks. I then had to rebuild as a starter. They like to take it slow so it was a long, slow process, but they took care of me the right way, and now I’m back healthy.
MMO: The New York Mets claimed you off waivers in early November. What was your initial reaction to the news?
Gonsalves: I was a little surprised the Twins tried to sneak me through waivers. But they have a lot of young talent that they need to protect, and I understood everything they were talking about.
I missed a big year that would’ve helped my career out, but I’m very excited to join the Mets. They seem very excited to have me and I think there’s a lot of possibility for growth here. I’m excited to learn from deGrom, Syndergaard, Stroman, and all of these guys. It’s going to be a good learning process for me, too.
MMO: Your addition is certainly a welcome one, as the team is a bit short on depth.
Gonsalves: I’m definitely excited and I’m excited to join a couple of old friends. I grew up playing travel ball with Dominic Smith and I’ve been training for the last five to six years with Corey Oswalt at the gym and we also played travel ball together, too.
MMO: I’ve always been curious about the whole DFA/waiver process from the player’s end. What was this experience like for you?
Gonsalves: I honestly had no idea. I just got home from the gym and I got a call from one of the Twins’ front office people and they were like, “Hey, you’ve been claimed by the Mets.” And I was like, I didn’t even know I was DFA’d.
It was definitely a surprise but I’m excited to be a part of this franchise.
MMO: Considering you’re coming off an injury and only pitched 13.0 innings in the minors this year, is your offseason training any different than in years past?
Gonsalves: It’s a little different because I got to come home the whole month of September. It was the earliest I’ve been home and I got a little extra rest early and I figured I’d start throwing a little earlier. Normally I wouldn’t until about December 1, but I just started throwing this last week with Corey, just to make sure I’m ready to go and I’m coming into camp ready to fight for a job.
We started in October in the weight room and was just excited to get back out there.
MMO: Jeremy Hefner is rumored to be in the running for Mets pitching coach. Did you get to work with him at all during your time with the Twins? And if so, what were your impressions of him? (This interview – and question – took place prior to Hefner being hired by the Mets.)
Gonsalves: Jeremy is awesome. He’s a great guy. He was one of our advance scouting guys who was in the clubhouse when I got called up in ’18, and in 2019 they moved him to the bullpen.
He’s a bright guy, he has a lot of knowledge and he can come from both the baseball aspect and the analytical aspect to try and simplify stuff for some guys.
MMO: Are you a guy that likes to incorporate and utilize analytics and the data?
Gonsalves: I’m a little bit of both. There’s a lot to learn from the analytical side; they’ll show you where you’re most successful at and it’s always good to break it down a little bit. But then you just got to realize when you’re back out there on the mound that it’s just baseball and you’ve got to keep it simple.
MMO: Do you have a preference in terms of starting or coming out of the pen?
Gonsalves: I always envisioned myself as a starter. But I’m excited to help this team win, whether they see me in the bullpen or as a starter. I’m open to everything. Our goal is – especially with this young team – to get to the playoffs and win a World Series soon. Whatever is going to help this team win I’m open for.
MMO: Thanks for your time today, Stephen. Have a great offseason.
Gonsalves: Awesome, thank you so much.
Follow Stephen Gonsalves on Twitter, @TheSGonsalves
