Prior to the 2007 season, Brian Cashman was left with a decision of what to do with disgruntled outfielder Gary Sheffield. He had little attention of retaining him, so he decided to pick up his player option and trade him. A trade seemed like it would be difficult to pull of with a player who was older, missed most of the prior season due to injury, and obviously discontented, and yet Brian Cashman was still able to make off with the Detroit Tigers top pitching prospect as well as Kevan Whelan and Anthony Clagget. That top pitching prospect and center piece of the deal was none other then Humberto Sanchez. As is now, Sanchez may be the most hyped prospect with a losing record and career ERA over 4.00 that ever existed, but there are still reasons why Sanchez is so hyped. Sanchez’s career record is 30-31 and he does have a career ERA of 4.16, but this time the numbers do not tell the whole story. Injuries have completely marred Sanchez’s career, which is certainly cause for concern, but they have greatly hindered his performance as well. The 24 year old, Dominican right hander was originally drafted by the Tigers in the 31st round of the 2001 draft before being traded to the Yankees six years later. The real buzz around Sanchez formed in 2006 when he dominated AA Erie to the tune of a 1.76 ERA. It was that type of potential that kept Sanchez going through his various injuries and why he remains a top prospect to wait for once he recovers from Tommy John Surgery.
Sanchez features a 93-95 mph fastball, a curve, and a changeup much like many of the Yankees minor league studs. Sanchez was thought to be major league ready last season, and with all of the Yankees pitching injuries during the season it would have been almost a sure bet that Sanchez would have seen time in the majors during 2007. Unfortunately, Sanchez had Tommy John surgery during spring training and missed the whole season. This injury as well as many others are the biggest black mark on Sanchez’s resume. In fact they seem likely at this point to confine him to the bullpen rather then the rotation where he has started all but four of his 88 career minor league games. Sanchez’s stuff profiles perfectly for a bullpen role, but he’ll need to improve his control a bit to become a top flight relief pitcher. Sanchez’s career 4.56 BB9 is not horrendous, but it’s much harder to get away with that suspect control in the bullpen rather then as a starter. With the current state of the Yankees, Sanchez seems almost certain to be groomed as a reliever rather then a starter from here on out. Sanchez could be used to help the Yankees bullpen as soon as the midway point of the 2008 season assuming his recovery goes well. Given the depth of the Yankees starting pitching prospects, Sanchez can now be groomed to become a future closer, a role that many scouts believe he is suited well for. Either way, Sanchez appears set to become a large part of the Yankees future plans, as long as he can stay healthy that is.
Sanchez features a 93-95 mph fastball, a curve, and a changeup much like many of the Yankees minor league studs. Sanchez was thought to be major league ready last season, and with all of the Yankees pitching injuries during the season it would have been almost a sure bet that Sanchez would have seen time in the majors during 2007. Unfortunately, Sanchez had Tommy John surgery during spring training and missed the whole season. This injury as well as many others are the biggest black mark on Sanchez’s resume. In fact they seem likely at this point to confine him to the bullpen rather then the rotation where he has started all but four of his 88 career minor league games. Sanchez’s stuff profiles perfectly for a bullpen role, but he’ll need to improve his control a bit to become a top flight relief pitcher. Sanchez’s career 4.56 BB9 is not horrendous, but it’s much harder to get away with that suspect control in the bullpen rather then as a starter. With the current state of the Yankees, Sanchez seems almost certain to be groomed as a reliever rather then a starter from here on out. Sanchez could be used to help the Yankees bullpen as soon as the midway point of the 2008 season assuming his recovery goes well. Given the depth of the Yankees starting pitching prospects, Sanchez can now be groomed to become a future closer, a role that many scouts believe he is suited well for. Either way, Sanchez appears set to become a large part of the Yankees future plans, as long as he can stay healthy that is.
No comments:
Post a Comment