Joseph Gonzalez was another starting pitcher for the Tigers who had trouble getting out of the early innings. (AU Photo)

Auburn’s pitching lab vital to Gonzalez’s return

SEC Extra Mark Etheridge - March 12, 2024

AUBURN, Ala. – Last week, Auburn decided to hold Joseph Gonzalez out of the weekend rotation. Immediately, some feared the worst. This is baseball, after all, where pitchers often find themselves injured, or tender, or experience tightness. We are conditioned to expect the worst.

With Gonzalez, there’s even more at play. Expected to be the staff ace off a great 2022 season where Auburn went to the College World Series and the righty starred for Team USA, the righthander pitched on the opening Saturday of 2023 and didn’t throw again all season. It was an on-again, off-again flirtation with returning that[…]