A couple months ago, he seemed like a myth. Sure, people were raving about him- lauding his baseball talent and referring to him as our future- but had anyone actually seen him play? Well, this myth turned into a reality on August 3rd, when Gary Sanchez found himself DHing and batting 8th against the Yankees’ cross town rivals, the New York Mets. After striking out and popping up, Sanchez would lead off the 7th inning by lining a single up the middle for his first Major League hit. In the midst of a pedestrian season, Yankees fans became adrenalized by Sanchez’s potential, but I don’t think anyone expected what was to come.
A week later, Sanchez would go 4 for 5 and hit his first Major League home run against the Boston Red Sox. On August 16th, he would record his first multi home run game against the Blue Jays by going 3 for 4 with four RBI’s. And just like that, he was off.
The Dominican Republic native now has everyone around the league in awe. On Monday, Sanchez was named the AL Player of the Week after batting .524 with four home runs, two doubles, and six RBI’s in just six games. He now becomes just the second catcher in Yankees’ franchise history to win the award (Thurman Munson won it in July 1976). Furthermore, Sanchez’s eight home runs in his first 19 games make him the first Yankee to hit that many long balls so quickly. Considering all the legendary players who have worn pinstripes, those two feats are pretty damn impressive.
Sanchez is currently batting .385 and coming off yet another two home run performance, this time against the Seattle Mariners. But not only is he producing offensively; Sanchez has also flaunted his defensive ability. His receiving, blocking, and arm strength all show major upside. Not to mention, people have praised his knowledge when calling pitches.
It’s safe to say that Sanchez has locked up the Yankees’ catching duties for the next couple of years. Although I am extremely high on Sanchez (if you couldn’t figure that out by the name of the article), I would like to see him produce over a full season. To expect him to project these recent “hot streak” numbers over a full 162 games would be implausible, but I could definitely see him as a .290, 30 home run player. Putting up those numbers would place him atop the league’s catchers, which I believe he has the potential for down the road.
