Gary Sanchez is Not a Miguel Sano Clone

There’s no denying that Twins fans know what Miguel Sano is at this point. While a streaky hitter, it’s hard to argue against his body of work being a solid outcome from a prospect projection standpoint. You’d prefer fewer peaks and valleys, but a career .819 OPS is nothing to scoff at. Sano will always rack up strikeouts in droves, but it’s not because he’s lacking ability.
 
In differentiating the two, let’s first understand what Sano is. The Twins' first baseman is a power hitter. He has a significant amount of swing-and-miss in his game, but he also displays a substantial amount of plate discipline. Sano’s hard-hit rate thus far has been 45.1%, often ranking near the top of Statcast leaderboards relative to his peers across the league. A 52.1% hard-hit rate in 2019 is the high watermark, and a 117 mph max exit velocity is nothing to scoff at. Sano’s 16.6% barrel rate is propped up by career-best numbers over the past three seasons.
 
When Sano struggles, it’s a reflection of timing and velocity. A 27.8% chase rate isn’t evidence that he expands the zone often, and Sano has only topped 30% once in his career. At his worst, Sano has pushed the whiff rate near 20%, but he sits at 15.8% to this point. A 63.7% contact rate isn’t ideal but reflects the three true outcomes approach, while his zone contact rating jumps 14% to 77.1%. A steady diet of fastballs is often fed to Minnesota’s first baseman, a rate of 31.7% over his career, as it’s been the pitch he’s had the most against.

Summarizing Sano’s output at the plate would suggest thunderous contact with immense power while displaying a good eye but struggling with velocity. He swings with intent, and there’s rarely contact that isn’t loud.
 
Now, how does that compare to Sanchez?
 
Yes, Sanchez, too, is a power hitter, but the outputs are hardly the same. Unlike Sano, Sanchez has never posted a 50% hard-hit rate in his career. Across the totality of his production, the hard-hit rate sits at 37.3%, a considerable drop from his childhood friend. Sanchez also owns a barrel rate 2% lower than Sano and rarely creeps towards the top of exit velocity leaderboards. Production is reflected in a lower HR/FB rate and a lesser line drive percentage.
 
When in the box, Sanchez also expands the zone nearly 5% more often. Despite doing this, the former Yankees backstop whiffs roughly 4% less than his teammate. Sanchez makes considerably more contact, both in the zone and out of it, but it comes at the cost of a desirable swing. If the goal is to get off an “A” swing each time, it’s clear that concessions are being made where results reflect a less-than-ideal process.
 
On the most basic level, comparing these two players boils down to this. One is a power hitter working with those parameters. The other is a power hitter working against those parameters. Miguel Sano has struck out roughly one-third of the time during his career, while Gary Sanchez has done so only one-fourth of the time. Sano takes more walks and is honed in on pitches he can do something with while exhibiting a swing that bears fruit at contact. Sanchez plays into pitcher’s hands while getting off a swing that may not generate desired results anyways.
 
They are very similar hitters that could benefit from one another. Every Twins fan has seen Sano go through periods where velocity ties him in knots. Yankees fans have grown accustomed to Sanchez failing to produce. This regime should hope to find a middle ground where both take walks and utilize loud contact in marrying their hulking pair.

MORE FROM TWINS DAILY
— Latest Twins coverage from our writers
— Recent Twins discussion in our forums
— Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook, or email