How Sixto Sanchez went from afterthought to ‘opening eyes’ and on verge of cracking Marlins’ roster
There are a lot of numbers and statistics that can help describe what right-handed pitcher Sixto Sanchez has gone through in his long journey to a hopeful return to Major League Baseball.
Here is one that’s perhaps the most telling: 1,268 days. That’s the amount of time between Sanchez’s most recent MLB game (Oct. 8, 2020, in Game 3 of the National League Division Series against the Atlanta Braves) and March 28, when the Marlins begin the 2024 season against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Marlins could have moved on from Sanchez at different points during that span, which included Sanchez undergoing several setbacks, two shoulder surgeries and just one inning pitched at the minor-league level through three-plus years.
But the organization held out hope that Sanchez, once a highly touted prospect and the centerpiece return from the J.T. Realmuto trade with the Philadelphia Phillies, would return to form.
With a week-and-a-half left until Opening Day, it looks like their patience has paid off with Sanchez projected to make the team as a multi-inning reliever after finally showing glimpses of his former self.
And Sanchez hasn’t lost sight of that commitment the Marlins gave him even in his darkest days.
“I’m very grateful for that chance and that opportunity in keeping me here and waiting for me to get back to the show and to the big-league level,” Sanchez said. “That just showed me that I’ve just gotta keep working and keep improving and show that I can come back and do my job.”
Entering spring training, it looked highly doubtful that Sanchez would be able to show enough to justify making the big-league club — and he needs to make the club this year, considering he is out of minor-league options. Pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre Jr. at the start of camp declared this spring “crunch time” for Sanchez.
So far, Sanchez has proven his worth.
He has tossed six shutout innings through four spring appearances, giving up just one hit and two walks while striking out four. His fastball has been sitting in the mid-90s, but he did touch 99 mph during his two-inning appearance on Wednesday, with Stottlemyre saying “there were a lot of people celebrating that day.” Sanchez’s changeup, arguably his best pitch, still looks solid, and he is still incorporating his slider and cutter into his arsenal.
“I’m happy overall for feeling like the same Sixto that I was before,” Sanchez said. “I can finally say that I feel 100 percent.”
Added Stottlemyre: “He feels like he’s part of the team. You can see it in his work. He’s having fun at this game again. If we keep him healthy after waiting this long, whatever role we use him in, he’s going to be a huge asset.”
The Marlins are working Sanchez as a reliever this camp. With each outing, they have cut the amount of time between appearances on the mound. Sanchez had five days between his first two games, four days between the second and third, and three days between the third and fourth.
Sanchez hasn’t pitched more than two innings in any of his four outings this spring but could potentially get stretched out to go a third inning before camp breaks this weekend.
“He’s been impressive,” Marlins manager Skip Schumaker said. He’s opening eyes, no doubt about it.”
All that’s left is for Sanchez to be formally told he has made the team. After three long, lost, tiring years, that moment could come before he knows it.
“I haven’t been told anything,” Sanchez said. “No news from the coaching staff, but I’m still doing my job and the things I know to do. I’m hoping for that good news to come soon.”
This and that
▪ Jesus Luzardo pitched six innings in a minor-league game on Sunday. The report from that outing: “The best he’s felt and looked,” Schumaker said Monday. “Felt really good coming out. Felt really good today. He’s where he needs to be, which is what you want to hear.”
▪ Right-handed relief pitcher Calvin Faucher (shoulder impingement) threw 20 pitches a live batting practice session against a pair of minor-league hitters on Monday.
▪ The Marlins’ latest round of camp cuts included four players being reassinged to minor-league camp: left-handed pitcher Devin Smeltzer, catcher Will Banfield, and infielders Tristan Gray and Javier Sanoja.
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