Sanchez awaits calls to majors

Gaby Sanchez, 1B/3B, Marlins: If not for a right-knee injury suffered during a play at the plate in early May, Sanchez might have been in the big leagues already. Instead it was Chris Coghlan who was called up as Sanchez missed a month of action. Sanchez was the favorite to earn the first-base job in spring training, but bat struggles and a bone bruise in his left knee suffered in a collision late in camp caused him to open the season at Triple-A.

However, Emilio Bonifacio is continuing to do very little at the plate with a .289 on-base percentage and .290 slugging percentage. Meanwhile, Sanchez has started 11 of his past 12 games at third base in the minors. He could earn a big league call and a chance at regular playing time soon.

Sanchez was a fourth-round pick in the 2005 draft out of the University of Miami and was originally a catcher before moving to a corner-infield spot. He immediately established himself by winning a batting title in his short-season league, but his 2006 season was marred by both a broken hand and broken foot that limited him to playing 74 games. He fell off the radar screen a bit with a mildly disappointing campaign in 2007, during which he hit .279 with nine homers. Still, it was in a good pitcher's environment in the high Class A Florida State League, and he hit 40 doubles.

Sanchez rebounded last year with a .314 average, 60 extra-base hits and as many walks as strikeouts in the Double-A Southern League, winning the league MVP and earning a cup of coffee in the big leagues in September. In 38 games this season at Triple-A, he has hit .322 with seven homers and a .387 on-base percentage.

Sanchez's calling card is consistently squaring the ball up when he makes contact, and although he doesn't have the greatest bat speed, he compensates with good pitch recognition, strong plate discipline and knowledge of the strike zone. He takes the ball to all fields and projects to hit for average with doubles power in the majors. He has a lot of what scouts call "5 o'clock power," which means he can put on a show in batting practice with his raw pop. Yet that power doesn't always translate to balls' leaving the yard during games, partly because his best power is to dead center and partly because sometimes he pulls off the ball.

He will get into the occasional rut when he gets away from his approach and chases a bit too much, but those ruts are becoming less frequent, and one opposing pitcher told me, "You can't pitch him the same way twice."

Defensively, Sanchez's thick 6-foot-2 frame limits his side-to-side mobility a bit, but he does have soft hands and the arm to play third and can make the routine plays at the position.

Although some scouts think the 25-year-old may just be a solid platoon player in the big leagues, he could be a right-handed version of Lyle Overbay (the good version of 2004 to 2006 before a hand injury changed his offensive output). He should bring batting average and a homer potential in the teens to the plate, and given the relative scarcity at the corner-infield position this season compared to recent years, he could be worth a look if he earns extended playing time.



(espn.com)