On February 4th, the RailCats added INF Marcos Gonzalez, who is going into his 2nd season starting with the RailCats and will be his 3rd season overall, as he only played in 26 games in 2023 later in the season. The RailCats also signed OF Carlos Machado, who signed last year but I believe was dealing with an injury that prevented him from playing in the 2024 season.

Starting with Marcos Gonzalez, who is 25 years old, out of San Cristobal, DR, he played in the Cleveland Guardians’ system before coming to the RailCats in 2023. Marcos led the RailCats in batting average at .261 (Jackson Valera actually led the team but was released before the season was over). Marcos was a solid piece in the batting order and on the field; he was a batter that gave you good at-bats and had solid power that made some pitchers pay. He played second base most of the year and was solid defensively. He had a fielding percentage of .976 and 9 errors.

Last season with the RailCats, he played in 71 games, had 257 at-bats, scored 39 runs, achieved 67 hits, 15 doubles, 1 triple, 10 home runs, 38 RBIs, and stole 3 bases. He walked 27 times and struck out 53. He slashed a .261/.338/.444 with an OPS of .782.

Marcos just wrapped up the season with the Colombian Winter League with Tigres, and he has some great numbers; he slashed a .306/.422/.425 and an OPS of .847. In 37 games, he had 24 RBIs, scored 31 runs, and drew 24 walks while only striking out 25. If Marcos can keep that up when he gets to Gary, he has a real shot of being a top player in the American Association and getting himself back in the MLB ranks. He is on my list of players to back to the Affiliate Ball!

WELCOME BACK TO THE SOUTHSHORE!

Carlos Machado is 26 years old and hails from Maracaibo, Venezuela, and he played in the Houston Astros organization. He played from 2015 to 2021, reaching Triple-A in 2021.

In the minors, he played in 259 games, slashed a .293/.339/.363 line, and had an OPS of .703. He scored 120 runs, had 269 hits, and recorded 102 RBI.

In 2021 and 2022, he played for Tri-City of the Frontier League; he only played in 7 games combined in those 2 seasons. There isn’t too much information out there on Carlos, but with an injury this season, it could be a slow start getting back into the grind, so I can see him potentially sitting out to start the season and rotating in and out.

I remember Manager Lamarr Rogers said he did coach him in Houston and has high hopes for Carlos!

WELCOME TO THE SOUTHSHORE!