The Mets introduced that they’ve reinstated catcher Tomás Nido from the injured record and designated fellow backstop Gary Sánchez for task in a corresponding transfer.
Sánchez, 30, was chosen to the Mets’ roster lower than every week in the past. He obtained seven plate appearances in three video games, placing out in three of them and producing a slash of .167/.143/.167 in that tiny pattern dimension. He wasn’t more likely to stick round for very lengthy anyway, since each Nido and Omar Narváez have been working their approach again from accidents whereas rookie Francisco Álvarez is prospering with a .253/.316/.506 batting line.
Previous to becoming a member of the Mets, Sánchez had simply turn out to be a free agent for the primary time this previous winter. Nonetheless, he lingered on the open market till April, when he signed a minor league take care of the Giants. That deal got here with an opt-out on Could 1, which he ultimately triggered after hitting simply .164/.319/.182 for his or her Triple-A membership. He fared significantly better after signing a minor league take care of the Mets, hitting .308/.514/.500 in Syracuse earlier than getting known as up and scuffling within the majors.
At this level, it’s powerful to determine what to make of Sánchez. He was as soon as arguably the most effective offensive catcher within the league, hitting 53 residence runs over 2016 and 2017 and slashing .283/.353/.567 for a wRC+ of 142. Nonetheless, that got here with issues about his protection, tying for the lead league in handed balls with 16 in 2017 after which taking sole possession with 18 in 2018. Extra lately, his offense has fallen off however his protection has improved. With the Twins final yr, he allowed simply 4 handed balls and had roughly common protection however hit simply .205/.282/.377 for a wRC+ of 89. This yr, he’s been inconsistent, however it could be truthful to surprise if all of the bouncing from membership to membership made it laborious for him to get right into a constant rhythm.
The Mets will now have every week to commerce Sánchez or cross him by way of waivers. The deal they signed him to got here with a prorated $1.5MM wage for the yr, which quantities to about $1.1MM from his choice to the top of the season. They may attempt to eat a few of that as a way to facilitate a commerce however he’ll most certainly find yourself launched, with the Mets nonetheless on the hook for that cash. If that involves cross, any of the 29 different golf equipment could be free to signal him and pay him the prorated league minimal for any time spent on the lively roster, with that quantity subtracted from what the Mets pay.
It’s been some time since Sánchez has been in peak type however there are many groups all through the league coping with accidents to their catchers. Maybe one or just a few of them will probably be intrigued by the opportunity of taking an opportunity on a Sánchez bounceback with basically no monetary threat.
For the Mets, this settles their catching state of affairs in the intervening time. Nonetheless, Narváez has lately began a rehab task and the membership should resolve what to do when he’s able to return.