2014 Stats:
Level: AA
.270/.338/.406 9.0% BB% 19.1% K% .135 ISO .314 BABIP 1/2 SB +7 DEF
Sanchez ranked #13 on Chris’ Yankees top 100 list.
Background
In 2009, Gary Sanchez was one of the coveted international amateur free agents. The Yankees nabbed him for a cool $3M bonus, and the following year he burst onto the scene in rookie ball posting a 188 wRC+. Baseball America tabbed Sanchez as the 30th best prospect in the game after 2010, but things have gone downhill since. He did hang around the top 100 from 2011-2013, but he finally fell off the list after this past season.
2014 Results
Sanchez played in Double-A all of 2014 after a brief stint at the level in 2013. He wasn’t bad, but he wasn’t spectacular. Sanchez posted a 108 wRC+ in his age-21 season, which although above average, certainly isn’t the progress the Yankees were looking for from a rising prospect. Disciplinary issues, which have followed Sanchez in his young career, also marred his 2014 campaign to the point where he was benched for a short time.
What KATOH says
KATOH — Chris’ prospect projection system — is lukewarm on Sanchez. It sees him as a guy with a high probability to make the majors (74%), but also somebody who probably won’t make too much of a contribution (3.1 WAR through age 28). Fortunately for Sanchez, he’s still just 22 so there’s still time for him to turn it around.
2015 Outlook
Sanchez has the tools to be an offensive force, but for whatever reason, those skills haven’t shined in the past couple of seasons. He was optioned to Double-A, although that doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll start there. I made a case for him to open the year at the level again, but it seems very possible that he’ll start the season in Triple-A Scranton. Regardless of where he starts, Sanchez needs to take a step forward after stalling out in recent seasons. From the organization’s perspective, a big year might make Sanchez prime trade bait, especially with Brian McCann under contract through 2018 and John Ryan Murphy a tier above him.