Angels manager Ron Washington informed reporters, including Greg Beacham of The Associated Press, that corner infielder Miguel Sanó has made the club’s Opening Day roster. Sanó was in camp on a minor league deal and will require a corresponding move to be added to the 40-man roster.
Sanó, 31 in May, had a lengthy run as one of the most potent sluggers in the game but is coming off two mostly lost seasons. He hit 161 home runs with the Twins from 2015 to 2021, a mark that put him in the top 25 among all major league hitters for that stretch. He struck out in 36.5% of his plate appearances during that time but also drew walks at an 11.6% rate. His .238/.329/.491 batting line over that seven-year period translated to a wRC+ of 118, indicating he was 18% better than league average.
But knee issues severely hampered him in 2022, as he was able to get into just 20 games and hit just .083/.211/.133 when in the lineup. The Twins opted for a $3MM buyout instead of a $14MM club option for 2023, sending him to free agency. He didn’t sign anywhere last summer and instead focused on his health, telling reporters a few weeks ago that he had lost 58 pounds since his last big league game.
He played some winter ball with Estrellas Orientales in the Dominican Republic a few months ago, hitting a couple of home runs in 27 games. That was enough for the Angels to give him a minor league deal and he has looked to be in decent form during the spring, with three homers in his 57 plate appearances.
It seems that was enough to get Sanó onto the roster and there are a few different ways he could factor into the club’s plans. Third baseman Anthony Rendon has dealt with a number of injuries, having not played 60 games in a season since 2019. Sanó hasn’t played the hot corner since 2021 and not regularly since 2019, but he did play it here in camp and could perhaps spell Rendon on occasion.
The Angels also have an inexperienced first baseman, as Nolan Schanuel was just drafted last summer. The Halos rushed him up to the majors last year, so he does have 29 big league games under his belt, but only 51 professional games total. He was also much better against righties last year, so perhaps Sanó can shield him from southpaws. Sanó has even splits in his career, 115 wRC+ against both righties and lefties, but he could factor in there nonetheless. Schanuel had 118 wRC+ against righties and 93 against lefties in his brief major league debut last year.
The club also doesn’t have a strict designated hitter, as Shohei Ohtani has been in that role for most of the past six years. Ohtani signed with the Dodgers and the Halos didn’t sign a pure DH-type to replace him, though they were connected to J.D. Martinez before he signed with the Mets.
Perhaps they will be rotating various players through that spot this year, with oft-injured veterans like Rendon or Mike Trout perhaps getting some more time as the DH, but Sanó could be plugged in from time to time as well. Lefty-swinging outfielder Mickey Moniak has a brutal line of .174/.202/.233 against southpaws in his career, so there could be pinch-hitting opportunities there.
How it plays out remains to be seen but it’s a nice story for a guy who has clearly worked hard to get over his recent struggles and get back to the majors. If he gets even part of the way back to the form he showed from 2015 to 2021, it will be a steal for the Halos.
The Angels are the best team ever
I’m curious what the angels are thinking with this signing “.200 batting average yeah let’s go with Miguel Sanó”
SB
They are thinking “even the Rockies don’t care about batting average in 2024,x
He has slowly hit better and better this spring after missing 2 years with injuries. Lost over 50 lbs , but got a late start with visa problems. He may be a little rusty at first, but looks like he has started to hit better and looks like he is making better contact with men on base. At least with my eyes it seems that way. He also seems to be improving his range at 3B, He might be helped by Washington and staff who have a pretty good track record.
Shadow, Banned the name, fits you perfect I guess your comment was worth I’d say hmm I guess a peanut
You must have missed the 161 homers he hit in Minnesota. By the way, Sano hit an absolute bomb tonight off Dodger pitcher James Paxton.
EVER….
Seriously? Between Sano & Rendon they have 3B covered.
I think you’d be better off covering third base with a dirt colored saran wrap and hope all runners just miss it and are called out.
You should be a lot more worried who is going to play second.
The Angels don’t have a second baseman or back up shortstop.
Pitching is still the biggest problem this team has. Sandoval, our number 1, lasted 1.2 innings in today’s opener.
He’s not our number 1. Why he got the starting nod was beyond me. He’s our number four.
I agree, but he got the nod so according to the Angels, he’s their number 1. And I said this last year and I’ll say it again: why is Suarez on a baseball team in the MLB? He is horrible.
If you agree, then we agree he’s our fourth best starter.
Everyone stunk.
Absolutely I think he’s our fourth starter. I think Detmers shows the most promise of the bunch.
I think he was a great addition
I’m surprised he’s back in the majors. I figured they’d give him the Puig/Bauer treatment and black list him
Black list for what? He had no legal trouble. Move along
They don’t need legal trouble to black list anyone and just because Sano’s victim didn’t sue doesn’t change what happened.
I don’t even support them cancelling careers over behavior outside of baseball. I’m still surprised that Sano hasn’t gotten the same treatment others have.
MLB conducted their investigations and concluded that he won’t receive any discipline.
Being innocent is no excuse!
He looked all spring that he was getting back to where he was years ago.
Must’ve been that stolen base!
He looks like he was a few years ago.
He’s trim and really the only option for third base once Rendon gets hurt.
Wonder who gets the boot?
Probably Stefanic
Stefanic will open up on the DL as will Stephenson, so that will open up a couple of spots on the 40-man roster.
Stephenson and Stefanic being on the DL won’t open any 40 man roster spots unless they’re on the 60 day DL. I doubt Stephenson will be on the 60 day. I suppose Stefanic could be, and Sam Bachman might also.
Renjifo is serviceable
Even Minasin must have realized he could not play Rengifo at 3B or SS.
@Omarj nope he’s not, rengifo is still giving up a couple errors a game even the defensive wizard Washington can’t fix him.
Rengifo is a below average defensive shortstop, but certainly not giving up “a couple errors a game.” He’s started 75 games at shortstop in the majors, and he certainly does not have 150 errors.
@socalbball I was talking about spring training, and maybe it was because he was out most of spring but he was doing that either a error or mental gaffe on a easy play. It was second base and third base. Just because it wasn’t scored a error doesn’t mean it wasn’t one.
Rengifo’s range last year was in the lower 3 percentile. He has horrible feet.
Just making a roster is an incredible “feet”….
@halo11fan two left feet, and terrible decision making, the only thing he should be servicing is my car at the jiffy lube.
He has no crossover step. I’m really glad others see it.
@halo11fan not sure if anyone does besides the guy with the stats saying rengifo was a top 3 hitter the last two months of the season. His bat is inconsistent too.
Hitting wise, he had a great two months, and a horrible first three month.
He seems to always have a horrible first three months and his best month is July.
Great move twins made a huge mistake letting him go
Bro has literally not played since leaving Minnesota.
the twins probably would have been the losers if they kept him. He said he took the time away from baseball to focus on his health… so in theory if they give him the club option of $14 million, he doesn’t get healthy and continue to perform at a very sub optimal level… so release and are out millions. What’s your opinion then?
He needed the time off to get this opportunity. Just be happy for the dude.
It might have been the sub-.100 batting average and striking out over one third of the time. If the Twins had picked up a $14 million option based on that, their fan base would have blown a gasket.
If he can stay in shape and motivated he could be a great addition to the team.
As a twins fan I am very excited to see him get another chance.
I never really cared for Sano, but it is always good to see someone not give up on their dream. I hope he does very well against any team not called the Rockies.
It may be a nice story for Sano, but it also underscores the dearth of talent in this organization.
Yes, we know, but it would be nice if they actually found a diamond in the rough for a change. Good fortune is long overdue in Anaheim
Happy for Sano, but this is a funny line: “He played some winter ball with Estrellas Orientales in the Dominican Republic a few months ago, hitting a couple of home runs in 27 games. That was enough for the Angels….”
Bad mistake. This guy would hit 50 homeruns in Houston or Colorado
No one in the history of the Rockies franchise has EVER hit 50 home runs. Why do people think any AAAA bum could?
This is simply a sign of tanking, which incredibly continued to worsen across the league.
I try to ignore mythical creatures.
Miguel sano and Franmil Reyes hit 500 home runs in their careers 5 years ago in mlb the show
You should probably crank it up to Veteran there, Tommy.
He was mostly a victim of himself. He was out of shape the end of his time with the Twins, was close to 300 pounds and had an OPS not much larger than that.
Why does Fangraphs have Rendon leading off? Are they trying to get his AB over with so he can spend more time with his family and personal hobbies?
@old York Washington wants him to lead off.
Washington wants him to lead off because he’s got a lifetime .367 OBP. As bad as he was last year, he still had a .361 OBP. He gets on base.
Until last week I had no idea Sano still played. And same with Pablo Sandoval. Didn’t know he signed a minor league deal with the Giants.
You better believe it!
This guy will be injured within first few weeks of the season.
Now watch Sano have a better season than Ohtani somehow.
I don’t know what to expect from Ohtani. I’m sure this scandal will affect his production, especially if he wasn’t truthful.
It’s the Angels pitching that could get them on the cusp of a wild card berth. The whole staff is maturing in front of our eyes and I expect an upward trajectory for all 5 starting pitchers. Their most talented starter is actually their 5th starter, Silseth. Don’t sleep on Chase. He has a lot of life on his fastball even when his velo is down. If they slotted him higher than fifth in the rotation, he would be a kick for 200 KS. He has that kind of stuff!
I wouldn’t want any part of Ohtani this season. Not at his DH value for sure. AL West will be kinda tough. There’s 3 teams there that look like they might have playoff potential for sure, and Angels will have to deal with that competition.
Silseth looked great tonight vs the Doyers. Ohtani is 0 for 9 against his old team in 4 games this Spring.
Gotta get past the Red Sawx first – full throttle!
Low risk. Low, medium or high reward? They could always bring back Moose!
InSano: The Comeback (2024: The Year of Dreams)