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Nationals Sign Anibal Sanchez To Minors Deal

By Darragh McDonald | March 13, 2022 at 2:05pm CDT

The Nationals have signed veteran right-hander Anibal Sanchez, reports Jon Heyman of MLB Network. It’s a minor league deal, reports Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post. If selected, he’ll be paid $2MM, with $1.5MM in performance bonuses available, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post.

A veteran who made his MLB debut back in 2006, Sanchez had his best years from 2010 to 2014, making 145 starts in that time, covering 895 innings with an ERA of 3.43. Unfortunately, things went south from there, with his ERA growing to 4.99, 5.87 and 6.41 over the next three seasons.

At that point, it was fair to wonder if his career was over, but he made an incredible comeback in 2018. After signing a minor league deal with the Braves, Sanchez threw 136 2/3 innings for Atlanta with a 2.83 ERA, parlaying that into a two-year, $19MM contract with the Nats. In 2019, he kept the comeback going with 166 innings of 3.85 ERA ball, and then 18 more innings in the postseason with an ERA of 2.50, helping the team on their remarkable World Series run.

The comeback ran out of steam in 2020, however, as Sanchez logged 53 innings in the shortened campaign with an ERA of 6.62. In 2021, he continually held showcases for interested clubs but ultimately never found a deal to his liking and missed the entire season. Yesterday, he held yet another showcase that was apparently impressive enough for him to land an offer just ten minutes later, per Heyman. Now Sanchez is back where he was four years ago, signed to a minor league deal and hoping to show he’s still got something left in the tank.

The Nationals would surely love for him to succeed, as they have lots of uncertainty in their rotation. Stephen Strasburg will be at the front of it if healthy, but that’s a big “if” after only throwing 26 2/3 innings over the past two years. Patrick Corbin will have another slot, but he had an ERA of 5.82 last year. Erick Fedde’s ERA was 5.47 in 2021. Joe Ross just had a bone spur removed from his throwing elbow and will be set back six to eight weeks, per Dougherty. Beyond that, the rotation options are unproven youngsters like Josiah Gray, Paolo Espino, Joan Adon, Seth Romero, Josh Rogers and Gerardo Carrillo. As the club endures a rebuild after last year’s selloff, they will surely want to have opportunities for those youngsters to show what they’re capable of. But they will likely also have the need for a veteran like Sanchez to take some starts and log some innings as well.

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View Comments (18)
Post a Comment

18 Comments

  1. The Baseball Fan

    3 years ago

    Wow. I’m honestly shocked that he got signed by a major league team

    4
    Reply
    • SonnySteele

      3 years ago

      If this trend continues they’ll soon be offering MLBTR commenters front office positions. 😉

      4
      Reply
    • Sid Bream Speed Demon

      3 years ago

      He didn’t, he got signed by the Nationals.

      13
      Reply
      • Superstar Prospect Wander Javier

        3 years ago

        They’re only 3 years removed from a championship. I think they get some leniency on a rebuild. It’s not like we’re talking about the Pirates.

        13
        Reply
        • Sid Bream Speed Demon

          3 years ago

          Lol, thanks.

          1
          Reply
        • RochesterMetsFan

          3 years ago

          I’d like to hear more about this hypothetical situation

          3
          Reply
        • Holy Cow!

          3 years ago

          You don’t have one?

          1
          Reply
        • BaseballBrian

          3 years ago

          And compete against, well you know.

          Reply
        • Detroit_SP

          3 years ago

          Wait, people here have penises?

          I thought we were all women.

          3
          Reply
        • DanielDannyDano

          3 years ago

          Bet you say that to all the boys…..

          1
          Reply
        • Gwynning

          3 years ago

          I identify as a woman whenever group lockerroom showers are a thing…

          1
          Reply
      • Curly Was The Smart Stooge

        3 years ago

        I think he would have been feared by hitters if his name had been Hanibal. Sanchez needs to buy an “H”

        5
        Reply
        • A Seal

          3 years ago

          More likely he should buy a C.

          5
          Reply
        • Curly Was The Smart Stooge

          3 years ago

          They both are carnivorous

          4
          Reply
  2. Hello, Newman

    3 years ago

    Gosh, Nat fans are weird

    5
    Reply
  3. natxandria

    3 years ago

    He was four outs from a no hitter in the NLCS.

    1
    Reply
  4. Armaments216

    3 years ago

    The Nats might have plenty of unproven youngsters. Paolo Espino, age 35, would probably find it amusing to be listed second among them.

    1
    Reply
  5. Cora the Destroya

    3 years ago

    Didn’t realize this guy was under 40. Worth a shot, good to see him back.

    Reply

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