Carlos Gonzalez Trade Rumors: Latest Buzz and Speculation Surrounding Rockies OF

Although star outfielder Carlos Gonzalez was at the center of trade rumors last July, the Colorado Rockies never seemed serious about dealing him.

According to Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal, however, the team's stance on that front—and on the front of shortstop Troy Tulowitzki—may be slightly wavering:

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The Rockies are telling clubs they are keeping their “eyes and ears open” for potential deals involving both players, according to major-league sources.

The Rockies, under new general manager Jeff Bridich, are not shopping either player or starting a fire sale, sources say. But team officials finally seem to have persuaded owner Dick Monfort to consider all possibilities.

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Battling a variety of injuries, Gonzalez played just 70 games in 2014 and was never really able to get into a rhythm. He hit .238/.292/.431 in 281 plate appearances, while his OPS (.723) was by far the worst mark since his rookie campaign in 2008.

Making teams even more gun-shy about acquiring the 29-year-old, he's recovering from mid-August surgery to repair a damaged patella tendon in his left knee and may not be ready for spring training.

"We really won't know how he is going to be until that 4 1/2- to 5-month mark," Rockies trainer Keith Dugger said, via MLB.com's Thomas Harding. "He might be a little delayed for Spring Training, but our goal is to get him there and get him ready.

The New York Daily News' Andy Martino and the New York Post's Joel Sherman summed up the difficulty in getting a deal done:

On the flip side, CarGo's talent has never been in doubt. 

In the four seasons prior to 2014's forgettable one, the lefty outfielder hit .311/.370/.556 with an average of 27 home runs, 91 RBI and 22 stolen bases per campaign. When healthy, he has proven to be a consistent 20/20 threat who also hits for average.

Moreover, he's under contract for three more years at a very reasonable $53 million. 

According to Rosenthal, the Rockies will only listen to offers that reflect Gonzalez's worth when healthy, so we're unlikely to see talks progress until CarGo is back to 100 percent. But if Colorado gets off to another slow start in 2015, a fire sale seems much more likely under the new regime.