Article: Twins Sign RHP Anibal Sanchez... No, Really

[jimbo92107]

This is our BIG HINT: The Twins are going to use 2018 as a season-long tryout for every plausible pitching prospect in AAA and AA. 

 

If you thought 2017 was musical chairs in the starting rotation, you ain't seen nothing yet. Expect to see half again more candidates try their hand at pitching in the majors. Wouldn't surprise me to see 25 different starters this season. 

[Mike Sixel]

He asked to go to the minors last year, he didn't consent, he asked

[adorduan]

Maybe we can sign Kevin Correia and Tommy Milone too.

[Otto von Ballpark]

He asked to go to the minors last year, he didn't consent, he asked

Even more likely then that he might expect to start the year in AAA.

 

Although, don't we already have 5-6 starters for AAA? Maybe we shouldn't want this guy down there if he's not even good enough to make our MLB staff...

[markos]

I don't think he was even on the Twins radar until Santana had surgery.

 

Given the nature of his contract, I'm guessing this is the thought process:

- if he is bad in spring training, he is cut

- if he is decent, he takes Santana's spot in the starting rotation

- once Santana comes back, he gets cut unless he is performing

 

I would probably put the over/under on regular seasons games started for the Twins at 1.

[adorduan]

 

This is our BIG HINT: The Twins are going to use 2018 as a season-long tryout for every plausible pitching prospect in AAA and AA. 

 

If you thought 2017 was musical chairs in the starting rotation, you ain't seen nothing yet. Expect to see half again more candidates try their hand at pitching in the majors. Wouldn't surprise me to see 25 different starters this season. 

And it's stupid, if that's what they are doing.  Wasting a year of their young cost controlled players,  hoping to hit the lotto.

[Riverbrian]

 

Looking at the numbers the last 3 years. It appears he may have been quite unlucky.
His k and bb rates have held steady, while his hr rate and babip have skyrocketed.

I wanted to be upset when I first saw the signing, but this actually looks like it could be a pretty smart buy low candidate.

 

It seemed like whenever Anibal would face us. He would hang a few zeros and then BOOM... he'd hang a crooked number. 

 

It seemed like he couldn't get through the order a 2nd time. 

[Mike Sixel]

Making decisions based on spring training scrimmage games against AA and AAAA players seems like a bad idea. If only there were three years of data.....

[birddog]

Twins needed a #1 starter and got a #11. Is that twice as good? 

 

I can only quote what Harry Doyle would have said. "Well, they sign Sanchez to release someone off the 40-man. Falvine must have been thinking . . . I don't know WHAT the hell they're thinking!"

[Richie the Rally Goat]

Well, if he pitches just well enough not to be cut, he would not be a train wreck, no?

being a less bad alternative to a guy with 25 innings of AAA ball can still be a train wreck.

[Rosterman]

Well, the Twins missed out on bringing back Bartolo Colon, so this is the next best thing...I guess.

[Danchat]

 

Who said good?

 

This just isn't a move to be upset about. Kind of like picking up utility IF or OF that might not even make the team. But yet people get upset about those kind of moves.

That's what I'm hoping for, but if this is the only starting pitching move they make, then that's really bad. If they sign Cobb, then then Sanchez is facing off against guys like Slegers and Duffey for that #5 spot which should only be open for about 5 trips through the rotation and that's far more preferable.

[Doomtints]

The Twins have been doing this for years -- signing washed up guys before spring training. Sometimes the players make it through spring training, sometimes not. Sometimes they are cut a month or two later, sometimes not. Nothing new to see here.

 

The Twins are still rolling the dice on has-beens.

 

The front office change hasn't changed a hell of a lot with how this team is run.

[markos]

 

Making decisions based on spring training scrimmage games against AA and AAAA players seems like a bad idea. If only there were three years of data.....

I'm guessing that the Twins have PitchFX/Statcast capabilities in their Ft Myers facilities to determine if his stuff has improved independent of his results.

 

To that end, maybe they think he is a tweak or two away from being effective again. From what I've read recently, Detroit is pretty far behind in their data and player development abilities. If I recall correctly, Houston was able to almost immediately fix a flaw in Verlander's delivery that make his slider more effective based on their data and high-speed camera analysis.

[Richie the Rally Goat]

Looking at the numbers the last 3 years. It appears he may have been quite unlucky.

His k and bb rates have held steady, while his hr rate and babip have skyrocketed.

 

I wanted to be upset when I first saw the signing, but this actually looks like it could be a pretty smart buy low candidate.

or he consistently throws batting practice

[Thrylos]

 

How is this not bad?

This is, right now, the only starting pitching move they’ve made.

 

Signing Sanchez has zero risk, thus is not bad. 

 

This being their only SP move (i.e not singing a top of the rotation pitcher, yet) is can be bad, if it is still the case by opening day.

 

The two things are unrelated.

[Tom Froemming]

Just ask Nick Burdi and Luke Bard how valuable a 40-man roster spot is ...

[Mr. Brooks]

or he consistently throws batting practice

Possibly. But if so, how has he maintained his k rate?

[Mr. Brooks]

Just ask Nick Burdi and Luke Bard how valuable a 40-man roster spot is ...

Regarding Burdi, pretty tough to pitch from the trainer's room.

[slash129]

This really isn't any different than the Vogelsong deal of yesteryear other than the 40 spot that will likely just be Pineda or May hitting the 60-day DL. 

[Otto von Ballpark]

Possibly. But if so, how has he maintained his k rate?

League K rate has been rising every year recently.

 

In fact, Sanchez had exactly the MLB average K% in 2017.

[Otto von Ballpark]

Regarding Burdi, pretty tough to pitch from the trainer's room.

Hey, we're paying Pineda $2 mil to do just that!

[Mr. Brooks]

League K rate has been rising every year recently.

 

In fact, Sanchez had exactly the MLB average K% in 2017.

Well, league average doesn't sound like batting practice to me.

Where would that k rate rank among Twins starting pitchers?

[kab21]

 

Signing Sanchez has zero risk, thus is not bad. 

 

This being their only SP move (i.e not singing a top of the rotation pitcher, yet) is can be bad, if it is still the case by opening day.

 

The two things are unrelated.

Somebody is on a roll this week. We continue to be in agreement.

[nicksaviking]

Regarding Burdi, pretty tough to pitch from the trainer's room.

Zero WAR is still better than -2 WAR.

 

I'm just baffled how this conversation even started. Was the front office really brainstorming and thought, how about Anibal Sanchez? Let's give him a call!

[bird]

 

This really isn't any different than the Vogelsong deal of yesteryear other than the 40 spot that will likely just be Pineda or May hitting the 60-day DL. 

 

If they don't lose a player from the 40-man, then it's a less painful but still ugly event. I can't help having this nagging suspicion that they don't think Lynn or Cobb are coming down enough on their demands to satisfy them and that they haven't found and probably believe they won't find a trade partner who isn't asking for more than they want to spend in prospects. I don't think it says anything about how they value the organization's prospects in general, but probably says something about the readiness of Gonsalves and Romero in particular.

 

As much as it would deflate me, I'm preparing myself to expect the worst, which is no acquisition of a front end starter from the outside here in 2018. I hope I'm wrong. Yuck.

[Otto von Ballpark]

Well, league average doesn't sound like batting practice to me.

Where would that k rate rank among Twins starting pitchers?

Well, Sanchez only threw 105 innings last year (84 as a SP), so there is a sample size issue there too. His K% was a tick below league average in 2016.

 

And I don't think that level of K rate means too much by itself. Michael Tonkin had a significantly better than league average K rate, even among relievers....

[TheLeviathan]

 

Signing Sanchez has zero risk, thus is not bad. 

 

This being their only SP move (i.e not singing a top of the rotation pitcher, yet) is can be bad, if it is still the case by opening day.

 

The two things are unrelated.

 

Why not just give him an invite to camp then?  

 

Everything about this smells like they plan to actually have him in the rotation.  There is nothing about that anyone should be happy about.

[Otto von Ballpark]

Wasn't there a theory the Twins passed on Darvish because they could get both Lynn and Cobb for the same money?

 

If nothing else, the Sanchez signing and putting him on the 40-man roster would seem to put that long-shot theory to rest.

Edited February 17, 2018 by spycake

[DocBauer]

Serious question. There is NO WAY ANYONE, ANYWHERE who could see this as a major signing in any way, shape or form. It is the definition of a flier. But with the FO being so much more forward thinking in regards to analytics and the such, is there anything we could be missing here?

 

Has there been an injury problem I'm not aware of? A mechanical issue not seen? Are there numbers in Detroit that suggest he'd be much better with a change of scenery? Has he been playing winter ball and suddenly looking different?

 

Not being snarky, I'm honestly asking if we're missing something the FO might be looking at for this flier vs some other flier options that have been out there for an "extra" option that Sanchez appears to have been signed for.