Gary Sánchez. Photo via Syracuse Mets
On Friday afternoon, the New York Mets announced they’ve selected the contract of veteran catcher Gary Sánchez from Triple-A Syracuse and catcher Michael Pérez was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse.
To make room for Sánchez on the 40-man roster, outfielder Tim Locastro has been moved to the 60-day injured list with a right thumb UCL sprain. Additionally, catcher Tomás Nido will begin a rehab assignment tonight with Low-A St. Lucie.
Sánchez, 30, recently signed a minor league deal with the Mets after he opted out of his deal with the San Francisco Giants. Sánchez had a similar opt-out in his Mets deal with a midnight tonight deadline. In eight games for Syracuse, the former Yankee hit .308/.514/.500 with two doubles, one home run, nine walks, and 10 strikeouts. He played five games behind the plate and was the designated hitter for three.
The former All-Star hit .205/.282/.377 with 24 doubles, 16 home runs, and 61 RBIs last season in 128 games with the Twins. Despite the poor 88 OPS+ last season, Sánchez continued to hit the ball hard. He was in the 97th percentile for max exit velocity, 92nd percentile for hard hit percentage, and 92nd percentile in barrels.
Defensively, Sánchez was average last season, right at 0 catcher runs. He was in the 50th percentile for framing, -2 runs blocking, and +2 runs throwing runners out.
Pérez went 4-for-7 with a double in two games for the Mets this season.
