With injuries and inconsistencies plaguing their catcher group in recent weeks, the New York Mets decided to turn to veteran Gary Sanchez to help them weather the storm.
The Mets announced on Friday that they have called up Sanchez from Triple-A Syracuse and added him to the active roster. In a corresponding move, they sent catcher Tomas Nido on a rehab assignment to Single-A St. Lucie and optioned catcher Michael Perez to Syracuse.
The move represents a return to New York for Sanchez, who spent the first seven years of his MLB career with the New York Yankees.
“It feels good to be back here in New York after all those years,” Sanchez told the reports through an interpreter. “It’s a different team, but it’s still the same city, so it’s exciting to be here.”
Sanchez spent 2022 with the Minnesota Twins and played 128 games during the campaign. He finished the season with a .205 batting average to go with 61 RBIs and 16 home runs.
After his contract with the Twins expired, Sanchez initially inked a minor league deal with the San Francisco Giants. He made 16 appearances with the Triple-A Sacramento River Cats before opting out of his contract in early May. The 30-year-old player signed a minor league contract with the Mets shortly after that.
Sanchez has batted .225 throughout his career and has 154 homers and 401 RBIs. He was selected to the All-Star game twice and has Silver Slugger Award from 2017.
