In a move necessitated by the team’s acquisition of reliever Neftali Feliz, Tony Sanchez was designated for assignment today by the Pittsburgh Pirates. The move brings an end to a colorful time with the team besotted by off-the-field incidents and lackluster progression.
If a rival MLB club does not claim Sanchez during the waiver period, he will remain in the Pirates’ system but will not be on their 40-man roster.
Taken with the fourth overall pick of the 2009 MLB Entry Draft, Sanchez carried the weight of those drafted behind him in addition to striving to make the major league club. Notable players taken after Sanchez included A.J. Pollock, Mike Leake and former American League Most Valuable Player Mike Trout to name but a few.
Sanchez’s big league career-to-date includes a total of 51 games comprising of only 155 plate appearances. The writing on the wall for Sanchez was likely seen last year, when a hot start at the plate was not enough to stave off a demotion to Triple-A Indianapolis. His defensive metrics during his time with the Indians resulted in other catching prospects such as Reese McGuire and Elias Diaz eclipsing his status.
In his MLB appearances, Sanchez only threw out 17 percent of baserunners for his career, far below the 27 percent MLB average. The 2015 season did not see much improvement. After being sent down, Sanchez continued to struggle, with 12 errors and a middling 18 percent caught stealing clip.
With Francisco Cervelli and Chris Stewart manning the MLB backstop and Diaz not far behind, Sanchez became an expendable option to clear room for Feliz.
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