Utility man Marwin Gonzalez returns to Astros on minors deal

The signing comes after the Boston Red Sox designated Gonzalez for assignment earlier this month. The Venezuelan hit .202/.281/.285 with two home runs and 20 RBI in 77 games for the Red Sox this season after signing a one-year, $3 million deal with the ball club. 

Gonzalez spent the first seven seasons of his career in Houston, winning a World Series with the Astros in 2017. During those seven years, he hit .264/.318/.419 with 76 home runs and 292 RBI. 

The 32-year-old then joined the Minnesota Twins for the 2019 and 2020 campaigns, hitting .248 with 20 home runs and 77 RBI. 

Gonzalez will begin working out at the Astros spring training complex in Florida before taking the field again. His addition gives Houston much more flexibility in the infield entering the final weeks of the regular season and he could be on the team's playoff roster, which will expand to 28 players. 

The Astros are first in the American League West with a 75-52 record, 5.5 games ahead of the second-place Oakland Athletics.