Ultimately Gary Sanchez Just Ran Out Of Time With The New York Yankees

It was late July 2016 when the Yankees realized they did not possess enough to contend, not even for the 87 wins and wild-card berth they attained with an aging lineup in 2015 while the Mets stormed to first place in the NL East and a World Series appearance.

Trading the various veterans meant an influx of younger talent and one of the first names to emerge was Gary Sanchez and when he officially became a major leaguer on Aug. 3, 2016 at Citi Field, the buzz was palpable. It also was a time when Alex Rodriguez was bowing out, something he would do with an emotional final game on Aug. 12, two days after Sanchez hit the first of his 20 homers in 53 games.

It was that power binge of two months that gave fans visions of another power-hitting catcher and also helped the Yankees make a run into wild-card contention before their bid fell five games shy of the Baltimore Orioles.

Sanchez continued the power in 2017 with probably one of the favorite editions of the Yankees for most fans within the past decade. He was part of a young group who surprised their way to a 91-win season, a comeback in the wild-card game, and Division Series and three electrifying home wins over the Houston Astros in the ALCS.

Those two years were as good as it got offensively for Sanchez, who became a former Yankee Sunday night. While sports fans were fixated on Tom Brady unretiring and figuring out what teams to pick in their NCAA tournament brackets, the Yankees made their biggest move of a two-part offseason (before the owners lockout and after the lockout) when they sent him along with Gio Urshela to the Minnesota Twins for Josh Donaldson and Isiah Kiner-Falefa.

Adding Donaldson is the buzzworthy news given his comments about Gerrit Cole last June and their peace summit to clear the air Monday shortly after the third baseman’s arrival.

Trading Sanchez and ending his time in the organization after 12 years also is buzzworthy because the power still existed but the rest of the offense seemed to vanish since 2017. He batted .299 in the 53-game power show of 2016, .278 in 2017 but in an injury-plagued 2018, the average dropped to .186 in 89 games.

In 2019, it seemed to bounce back when he batted .232 but produced well above average totals for a catcher of 33 homers and 77 RBI. In the pandemic 2020 season when everything was out of sorts, he batted .147 but hit 10 homers, including a game-ending pinch hit grand slam in extra innings to beat the Mets.

The numbers in the 60-game season seemed irrelevant to the Yankees when they tendered him a contract for 2021. He then hit .204 but still hit 23 homers but the long cold streaks seemed to be among the factors Sanchez joining the Twins and likely becoming the latest former Yankee to sport facial hair at some point.

Even though the Yankees moved on from a player who showed potential and still was a lightning rod for some fans on social media and talk radio, it was still was an example of the human side of the game, which often was not on display during the lockout, especially when you consider the words of manager Aaron Boone, who never waivered in his unconditional support.

“It was an emotional conversation,” Boone told reporters Monday in Tampa, Fla. “Essentially thanking him, telling him I love him. I want to see him go have success. But I’ve always liked Gary and appreciated my relationship with him.”

This year seemed like it was going to be big one for Sanchez. The Yankees tendered him another contract in a move that seemed based on what was not available in the catching market and how he performed would seem to indicate if he was re-signed in free agency after this season.

Ultimately for all the appreciation the Yankees bestowed on him, they felt they ran out of time with him, especially when some of his defensive struggles kept happening to negate a cannon arm for opposing players looking to steal bases against him.

“He’s got a love of this franchise, a passion — he grew up in this place,” GM Brian Cashman told reporters. He cares a great deal.

“We’ve invested a lot of time and effort in him, and he has in us. All he’s ever wanted to do and all we’ve ever wanted to do is win as many games as we could together. He certainly helped us in that category quite often.”

It is certainly possible all the things the Yankees waited to happen could be unlocked in Minnesota, especially in a setting where things may not be magnified as much as they are in the land of 162 one-game seasons.

“In a situation that is already very challenging and very competitive, it just adds another layer of challenge to what you’re trying to do,” Twins manager Rocco Baldelli told reporters in Fort Myers, Fla. “I don’t think anyone is immune to [the pressure of] playing in bigger markets. It is a different type of experience.”