06/13/2006 9:13 AM ET

Faces on the Field: Anibal Sanchez

Carolina Mudcats right-hander pays off for the Marlins

By Lisa Winston / MLB.com

 

Anibal Sanchez was traded to the Marlins organization as part of the Josh Beckett deal. (Gerry Broome/AP)

 

 

 

 

When the Florida Marlins traded ace pitcher Josh Beckett, veteran third baseman Mike Lowell and hard-throwing reliever Guillermo Mota to the Boston Red Sox last November for four prospects, it may have appeared just a tad lopsided to anyone who wasn't intimately familiar with the Red Sox Minor League system.

After all, Beckett had been the MVP of the 2003 World Series for the Marlins and was a former first-round pick. Lowell was a stable veteran who could provide leadership at a spot left vacant by the departure of free agent Bill Mueller. And Mota seemed to be a closer waiting to happen -- if he could just harness the firepower of that arm.

 

And for what? A shortstop with great potential who had yet to play more than a handful of games above Double-A and three pitchers, all of whom had spent at least part of the 2005 campaign in A-ball.

 

Small wonder that Boston fans might have been feeling they were getting a steal of a deal.

 

Now they may have to start rethinking just who robbed who.

 

Beckett has been plagued once again by blisters, and getting blistered to the tune of a 5.26 ERA. Mota was quickly repackaged to Cleveland. And Lowell, while hitting a sweet .318, is 32 years old.

 

As for the Marlins? Hanley Ramirez was vying for National League Rookie of the Year honors, hitting .293 with three homers, 20 RBIs and 18 steals as the club's starting shortstop.

 

Relievers Harvey Garcia and Jesus Delgado had both been extremely effective in relief with the Class A Advanced Jupiter Hammerheads, with Garcia's 11 saves and .193 average against earning him a slot in the upcoming Florida State League All-Star Game.

 

But it's Double-A Carolina Mudcats right-hander Anibal Sanchez who might have been the key player in that package deal for the Marlins.

 

The 22-year-old right-hander from Maracay, Venezuela, had a 3.82 ERA through 13 starts as of June 12, and had struck out 76 Southern League batters in 70 2/3 innings while walking 24.

 

Despite his 2-6 record, Sanchez is one of the first names mentioned whenever Marlins fans or brass list the litany of names of young pitching prospects the organization amassed between the time of the Beckett deal and the end of the flurry of trades that officially marked "rebuilding time."

 

The babyfaced Sanchez grew up following his favorite players, not surprisingly other big leaguers who hailed from Venezuela such as shortstop Omar Vizquel and first baseman Andres Galarraga.

 

Passing by the local ballfield with his mom when he was about 7, Sanchez saw some other kids playing and told his mom he wanted to give it a try.

 

Within about 10 years, he was signed by the Red Sox and pitching in the Venezuelan Summer League. After spending the 2001 season in his team's bullpen, where he posted a 3.19 ERA, he moved to the rotation the next summer and had a 3.50 ERA in 11 starts.

 

A sore elbow, however, required surgery to shift the nerve. Though it was minor in comparison to "Tommy John" surgery, Sanchez feared his baseball days were done before they had really begun.

 

"I thought my career was over, because I'd seen a couple of guys who never came back from the surgery," said Sanchez, who stayed in the United States for 10 months following his operation to rehab before the beginning of the 2004 season. He spent that time adhering to a strict workout regimen which he now credits with what proved to be remarkable success when he made his stateside debut with Class A short-season Lowell of the New York-Penn League in '04.

 

Despite a 3-4 record, Sanchez led the league with a 1.77 ERA and 101 strikeouts in just 76 1/3 innings, limiting batters to a .160 average and leading the league in strikeouts per nine innings as well as starts (15).

 

He dominated with a fastball which had gained several MPH since his surgery and his curveball, while only occasionally flashing the changeup that would eventually become the third key to his arsenal.

 

So dominant and poised was Sanchez that when it came time for him to make his full-season debut, the Red Sox skipped him past Class A Capital City and started him at Class A Advanced Wilmington to begin the 2005 season.

 

There he went 6-1 with a 2.40 ERA in 14 games, striking out 95 in 78 2/3 innings before a midseason promotion to Double-A Portland where he finished at 3-5 with a 3.45 ERA.

 

That year was punctuated by a series of highlights that flashed him into the public spotlight: he started the Hall of Fame exhibition game for Boston in mid-May, was the starting pitcher for the Carolina League All-Star team in mid June and represented his team and home country for the World squad in July's Futures Game at the All-Star festivities in Detroit.

 

Sanchez savored every minute of his personal highlight reel.

 

"Starting the Carolina League All-Star Game was awesome because I'd never been in an All-Star game and it made me feel really good," he said. "And playing for the World Team in the Futures Game, that was really, really exciting. When I looked at that field I thought, 'One day I'm going to pitch here again, but as a big leaguer.'"

 

Despite all the accolades which might make a prospect feel he's part of his team's big picture, Sanchez was not surprised when he found out he was being dealt to the Marlins.

 

"You know, last year during the season they had been talking about trading me with Manny [Ramirez] for A.J. Burnett, and nothing happened but I knew I had to be ready," he said. "After the season was over I thought they would trade me, that they would trade prospects for guys with more experience."

 

Sanchez was able to discuss his situation with his friends Garcia and Delgado, both of whom are also from Venezuela, as well as with the Dominican-born Hanley Ramirez during the Caribbean World Series. All were enthusiastic about the new opportunity.

 

"It made it easier that we were going to Spring Training with a younger team," Sanchez said. "You knew you'd have more of an opportunity to pitch in the big leagues."

 

That feeling permeated the Marlins 2006 camp, even on the backfields where the Minor Leaguers toiled.

 

"Coming out of Spring Training, everyone saw that this year could be different," said Mudcats manager Luis Dorante. "You could start the year in Class A and end up in the big leagues. Everyone's more excited because they know if you put up good numbers, you could be in the Majors."

 

Though Sanchez was slowed during his first Major League Spring Training by tendonitis, he was ready when the bell rang on opening night, striking out seven in 4 2/3 innings as the Mudcats' starter against Mobile.

 

"He has good stuff and he's obviously not too far away from being called up," Dorante said of his firs-night starter. "He still has some things he needs to work on, but that's what we're here for."

 

Sanchez's biggest problem this year has been consistency, or lack thereof. He's given up five or more runs in four of his starts, but has limited the opposition to two runs or less six times.

 

Even during his stellar 2005 campaign, however, he'd gone through the ups and downs that come with the learning curve.

 

At Wilmington, he'd opened the season with one walk in his first five starts and six in his first 43 innings, before walking 18 in his last 35 2/3 innings prior to his promotion to Portland.

 

And with the Sea Dogs, after regaining his command in July, posting a 1.31 ERA and limiting Eastern League batters to a .178 average that month, his ERA skyrocketed to 6.65 down the stretch as he hit the proverbial wall in the final month of his first full season.

 

Sanchez's makeup and work ethic, though, give those who know him confidence that he will be joining his former Portland Sea Dogs teammate Ramirez in the big leagues before long.

 

"He needs to work on some little things, needs to improve on a couple of things mechanically and stay consistent with them," Dorante said, but then he added quickly, "but not much."

I think you will like what you see here...

 

http://www.soxprospects.com/players/sanchez-anibal.htm

 

Scouting Report: Sanchez was raised around a lot of pro players while growing up in Venezuela. Throws a two-seam and a four-seam fastball that tops out in the mid-90s with excellent control. Also throws an excellent deceptive changeup and a consistently improving curve. Good confidence and poise on the mound. Previously experienced nerve problems in his throwing arm, which he has seemingly now fully recovered from. Learned English quickly. Front-of-the rotation potential.

 

 

 

 

 

Losing him hurt just as much as losing Hanley