Sanchez's All-Star nod more meaningful in crowded field

Gaby Sanchez appreciated the encouragement from ex-hitting coach John Mallee and others. He dismissed it to a certain degree, but Sanchez appreciated it nonetheless.

He didn't roll his eyes at everything, just the All-Star stuff. Sanchez looked around the league and figured he had a better shot getting there on the merits of being his team's emergency third catcher.

The guy in St. Louis is a future Hall of Famer. The one in Milwaukee is on the verge of a monopoly money contract. Cincinnati has the reigning Most Valuable Player at first base. Philadelphia's guy is among the game's top power hitters.

When Mallee said he wouldn't be surprised to see him in Phoenix this week, Sanchez, in spite of his outstanding numbers, laughed it off.

"I was like, 'It doesn't matter what I do,' " Sanchez said. "There are too many. There are four guys there that just mash and play good defense, and are great ballplayers. It's one of those things I never even thought about because it's kind of out there so far."

Not only can Sanchez say he's an All-Star, he can say he made it when Albert Pujols, Prince Fielder, Joey Votto and Ryan Howard dominated the position. Sanchez is the Marlins' lone representative in Tuesday's All-Star Game at Chase Field. No Marlin first baseman could boast an All-Star nod until now.

Mallee reassured Sanchez the league knew how good he was. Don't count Sanchez among those who weren't surprised at the selection.

"Even when they called me, it was a surreal feeling," Sanchez said. "I was like, 'Wow, this is really happening.' I thought Anibal [Sanchez] was having a great year, and in my mind he was going to be the one to get it. … Of course, you continue to do anything, you always have a chance. Now I got that and it can never be taken away from me."

His baseball-reference.com page will forever have the All-Star banner displayed above his career starts, and deservedly so. The Marlins sat at 10 games over .500 after 50 games, in large part because of how Sanchez anchored the offense.

He followed up a .293 April average with a .345 mark in May. Though Sanchez slowed in June, along with the rest of his teammates, he remains on pace to eclipse last year's totals for doubles, homers and RBI.

"He's been pretty consistent, being a big RBI guy and keeping us in ballgames," manager Jack McKeon said. "Early part of the year, watching the games on TV, I thought he was the key guy. He was always delivering the clutch blows. Now he's getting some help."

Whether Sanchez would become a cornerstone for his hometown team at times was speculative. He was a high enough draft pick (fourth round) out of the University of Miami and always was regarded among the organization's better prospects. Yet Sanchez had unsuccessful auditions at catcher and third base before finally settling in at first.

Even after the Marlins traded Mike Jacobs in October 2008 and opened the way for Sanchez, questions remained about his long-term viability. The younger, higher-ceilinged Logan Morrison was a level behind.

Sanchez did his part to make sure it wasn't an either/or situation. He had an outstanding rookie season in 2010, prompting the Marlins to move Morrison to left field.

"I knew I could do it," Sanchez said. "There's was nothing in my head saying I couldn't. I knew I could play at this level and be successful at some point, and try to help the ballclub win. I knew the time would come. I had to tell myself not to get frustrated. The time would come where I had the opportunity to show what I had and just be me and play."


(sun-sentinel.com)