González was born in Maracaibo, Zulia State. The Cubs signed him as a non-draft amateur free agent in 1991, and he was a highly touted young arm in the Cubs system. He made his debut in 1997, posting a record of 11–9 and finishing ninth in voting for the National League's Rookie of the Year Award. He also pitched for the Cubs in 1998, then pitched in the minor leagues for nearly five years between three surgeries and a variety of injuries.
In 2003, he was rewarded by Tampa Bay with the Out of Nowhere Award. González ended up being the Rays' most consistent pitcher, despite his 6–11 record. He allowed three runs or fewer in 17 starts, but received the lowest run support of any AL East starter (3.91 runs per game). He finished with a 3.91 earned run average and 97 strikeouts in 156 innings. González was the pitcher on June 3, 2003, when Sammy Sosa was caught using a corked bat.[2]
Early in the 2005 season, González started three games for the Boston Red Sox, going 1–1 with a 6.65 ERA. Boston optioned him to the Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox in late May 2005, then recalled him to the major league club in early July to try to fill a hole in the back end of their bullpen. He appeared in Game 1 of the AL Division Series, a 14–2 loss to the Chicago White Sox, and allowed four runs in 2⅓ innings, including a three-run home run by Scott Podsednik.
In 2006, González started three games for the Mets but performed poorly. During the season, he was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for pitcher Mike Adams. González started five games for the Toronto Blue Jays Triple-A affiliate, the Syracuse Chiefs, in 2007, before being released.
In a six-season majors career, González posted a 30–35 record with 354 strikeouts and a 4.93 ERA in 131 appearances, including 83 starts, four complete games, two shutouts, and 572 ⅔ innings pitched.
González is one of 583 pitchers to have faced Barry Bonds six or more times in his career and the only one of that group never to have allowed him to reach base.[3]
