Chi Chi Gonzalez, out of action, but in middle of Albert Pujols fray

Chi Chi Gonzalez has been out of action since mid-March because of an elbow injury but that hasn’t kept him completely out of the action.

He was the subject of Albert Pujols’ ire during Saturday’s game after ducking out of the way of a high fastball from Yu Darvish. Pujols muttered something under his breath, seemingly towards Darvish, as the Ranger’s dugout suspected, before getting back in the box.

The Rangers dugout erupted with some choice words towards Pujols, who then gave it right back, pointing to someone specifically.

That someone was Gonzalez, who was standing with Cole Hamels, Tyson Ross and Andrew Cashner. Everyone was yelling, Gonzalez said, but Pujols singled only him out after the game, calling him Chi Chi Rodriguez.

“Pujols knows those guys. He doesn’t recognize me, I’m not in uniform,” Gonzalez said. “He got upset, whatever.”

Gonzalez assumes the name mistake was by design by Pujols.

“If that’s what he felt like would stab me back. He for sure looked me up,” Gonzalez said. “The camera was on him in the dugout and you could see him asking who is that, who is that. That was his come back, calling me Chi Chi Rodriguez. He remembers me now. That’s half the battle, right, getting in somebody’s head?”

Gonzalez said he understands being upset about a near shot to the upper body. But the Rangers’ starting pitchers weren’t going to stay silent after Pujols appeared to say something in Darvish’s direction. Pujols denied saying anything to Darvish.

“He was hollering at Yu so we’re going to protect. Whatever, I’ll take his heat,” Gonzles said with a shrug. “I didn’t think he would get that upset and remember. Probably took it in to his last at-bat that he punched out.”

This story was originally published April 30, 2017 at 2:37 PM with the headline "Chi Chi Gonzalez, out of action, but in middle of Albert Pujols fray."