Tony Sanchez
From BR Bullpen
Jorge Anthony Sanchez Jr.
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 6' 1", Weight 215 lb.
- School Boston College
- High School Miami Killian High School
[edit] Biographical Information
Tony Sanchez was the #4 pick in the 2009 amateur draft.
Sanchez was not heavily recruited out of high school due to weight issues, but he would cut 35 pounds from his frame in college. As a freshman at Boston College, he batted .318/.402/.425 and threw out 38.3% of attempted base thieves. In 2008, the sophomore was his school's offensive leader, batting .313/.394/.517. During 2009, Tony hit .346/.443/.614 and threw ouf 19 of 49 would-be base-stealers (leading the conference in runners thrown out). He set a school record with 63 runs. He was named third-team All-American by Louisville Slugger and became the first Boston College player to make the All-Atlantic Coast Conference first team. He finished college 5th all-time on the Boston College home run list with 24.
Sanchez was originally ranked as a late first-round/early second-round pick for the 2009 amateur draft but his stock rose right before draft day and he went 4th overall, to the Pittsburgh Pirates. It was the highest a Boston College player had ever been picked; Chris Lambert (#19, 2004) had held the record previously. The choice was viewed by some as a signability pick; with only a couple of top prospects in the draft and a weak crop thereafter (according to analysts), there was seen to be little range in talent between #4 and #20, for instance, leading a cash-strapped team to pick someone easier to sign.
Sanchez made his pro debut on June 21st with the State College Spikes, going 1 for 2 and driving in the winning run. Tony hit .308/.357/.385 in four games for the Spikes then .316/.415/.561 with 46 RBI in 41 games for the West Virginia Power and finally was 2 for 10 with a walk and two doubles for the Lynchburg Hillcats to conclude his first pro season. Baseball America rated him the #12 prospect in the South Atlantic League, right behind teammate Rudy Owens.
Tony started 2010 well offensively with the Bradenton Marauders at .314/.416/.454 after 59 games but only threw out 9 of 61 attempted base-stealers and had eight errors. He made the US team for the 2010 Futures Game but was beaned by a Jeurys Familia fastball shortly thereafter, breaking his jaw. After surgery, he missed the remainder of the season. Hank Conger replaced him on the US roster for the Futures Game. In 2011, he was promoted to the AA Altoona Curve, where he played 118 games. he hit .241/.340/.318, but did have 58 assists while playing full-time at catcher. Even though Pittsburgh was plagued by injuries to their catchers (Ryan Doumit and Chris Snyder most notably), Sanchez was not called up, let alone promoted to AAA, given his troubles with AA pitching. He got into a bit of trouble after the season, as newspapers reported in late January of 2012 that he had suffered a broken jaw in a barroom scuffle while participating in the Florida Instructional League the previous October. The injury had healed in time for spring training, where he was a non-roster invitee at the Pirates' big league camp.
Sources include Boston College bio
