By Nathan Krohn
When Andy Gonzalez was eight years old, he told his friends that he wanted to be a baseball coach. After being announced as the Boise Hawks hitting coach for the 2015 season, Gonzalez finally achieved that dream he spoke of all those years ago.
Growing up in Puerto Rico, Gonzalez lived with his aunt and a house full of relatives, spending the majority of his free time playing basketball and, of course, baseball.
When Gonzalez reached the age of 13, people started talking about his potential in baseball and how far it could take him.
“You start playing because you like it but then people notice you and it can turn into something big,” Gonzalez said during a phone interview.
After fully grasping his athletic potential, at the age of 16, Gonzalez followed suit with many of his fellow Puerto Rican little league teammates and moved to the United States to attend the Florida Air Academy.
Gonzalez’s high school success led to him being drafted at the age of 19 by the Chicago White Sox in the 2001 amateur draft.
Gonzalez knew he had an opportunity to make it to the MLB but also understood that the process would take time.
“I knew I had to play the game the right way,” Gonzalez said. “It takes time and you need to have patience.”
It would take Gonzalez six years before he made his major league debut in 2007 with the White Sox. The lessons he learned along the way are what he plans on passing down to his players.
“If you’re in the minor leagues then you’ve got talent but making it to the MLB takes more than talent,” Gonzalez said. “You need to have great preparation and mental maturity.”
Over the next few years, Gonzalez bounced between the minor and major leagues, making appearances with the Cleveland Indians, Florida Marlins and Baltimore Orioles organizations before hanging up his playing cleats for good in 2013.
However, Gonzalez had long been preparing for his future career in coaching.
“I’m a student of the game and I love knowing my role as well as everybody else’s role,” Gonzalez said. [While playing] I took the time to help out and teach my teammates when they needed it and that prepared me to be a coach.”
With the Hawks season quickly approaching, Gonzalez couldn’t be more excited for opening day in June.
“I just wanna be there, be on the field and be with the guys,” Gonzalez said. “I just want to teach all [that] I know.”
When Andy Gonzalez was eight years old, he told his friends that he wanted to be a baseball coach. After being announced as the Boise Hawks hitting coach for the 2015 season, Gonzalez finally achieved that dream he spoke of all those years ago.
Growing up in Puerto Rico, Gonzalez lived with his aunt and a house full of relatives, spending the majority of his free time playing basketball and, of course, baseball.
When Gonzalez reached the age of 13, people started talking about his potential in baseball and how far it could take him.
“You start playing because you like it but then people notice you and it can turn into something big,” Gonzalez said during a phone interview.
After fully grasping his athletic potential, at the age of 16, Gonzalez followed suit with many of his fellow Puerto Rican little league teammates and moved to the United States to attend the Florida Air Academy.
Gonzalez’s high school success led to him being drafted at the age of 19 by the Chicago White Sox in the 2001 amateur draft.
Gonzalez knew he had an opportunity to make it to the MLB but also understood that the process would take time.
“I knew I had to play the game the right way,” Gonzalez said. “It takes time and you need to have patience.”
It would take Gonzalez six years before he made his major league debut in 2007 with the White Sox. The lessons he learned along the way are what he plans on passing down to his players.
“If you’re in the minor leagues then you’ve got talent but making it to the MLB takes more than talent,” Gonzalez said. “You need to have great preparation and mental maturity.”
Over the next few years, Gonzalez bounced between the minor and major leagues, making appearances with the Cleveland Indians, Florida Marlins and Baltimore Orioles organizations before hanging up his playing cleats for good in 2013.
However, Gonzalez had long been preparing for his future career in coaching.
“I’m a student of the game and I love knowing my role as well as everybody else’s role,” Gonzalez said. [While playing] I took the time to help out and teach my teammates when they needed it and that prepared me to be a coach.”
With the Hawks season quickly approaching, Gonzalez couldn’t be more excited for opening day in June.
“I just wanna be there, be on the field and be with the guys,” Gonzalez said. “I just want to teach all [that] I know.”