The Detroit Tigers have decided to call up Anibal Sanchez to start Monday’s series opener against the Seattle Mariners. This will be his first appearance since being sent to Triple-A earlier this year.
It is somewhat of a surprising move, considering he is 0-2 with a 4.60 ERA with the Toledo Mud Hens this year. With his struggles in the minors, it is hard to believe he will once again have success with Detroit.
The good news is, he cannot do any worse now than he did before. Prior to being placed with the Triple-A affiliate, Sanchez had given up 21 runs in 21 innings. For those keeping track at home, that is a 9.00 ERA.
Following a 9-1 loss against the Tampa Bay Rays, where Tigers starter Buck Farmer surrendered seven runs in 2.1 innings, this looks to be a rough couple of games. The question that needs to be answered through all of this is, why now for Sanchez? He didn’t earn it with his play in Toledo.
Having Sanchez start on the road is a very smart move by the Detroit Tigers front office. If he doesn’t pitch well, as history says he will not, the fans won’t get to see it. Especially since it is a West Coast game, and will be on late at night.
That still does not explain the move to call up the struggling pitcher. There are three possible reasons for the move.
Number one is that they were signing his check and realized how much they are paying him to play with the Mud Hens. It is a lot. But still, even then they wouldn’t need to start him. He can take over the mop-up role.
A second thought is that he is being called up as a last chance for him. This start could make or break his future in Detroit. If he does not prove himself able to pitch at this level, then he will be banished to the Minors until his contract is up.
The final, and more likely reason, is that they are saving their better arms. On long road trips, especially out to the West Coast, there is no need to throw a normal starter because their chances of pitching well is not as high. It is a hard road trip to make for the players, so by using Sanchez they can let the usual rotation rest another day.
It could be some combination of all three of those. But there is something the Detroit Tigers are trying to accomplish by calling up Anibal Sanchez, because the statistics are saying he has done very little to deserve it.
Trevor Hooth is from Farmington, Connecticut. He is a senior Communication major at Millikin University where also plays baseball.