Yankees feel good story of the season: Catcher Gary Sanchez

The Yankees, and especially their manager, have singled out their 24-year old catcher for special treatment this season. And it hasn’t always been applied with TLC. Their patience is paying off both offensively and defensively, and the timing couldn’t be better.

The Yankees, and in particular their manager, Joe Girardi, only a few weeks ago had reached the point where it was fair to ask if they were beginning to lose patience with their All Star catcher, Gary Sanchez.

On the field, and especially behind the plate, Sanchez appeared to be just plain lazy. Either his body was dragging his mind, or maybe it was the other way around, but he was not reacting to pitches thrown purposively in the dirt.

He had amassed league leading totals in both passed balls (11) and errors by a catcher (10). It had reached the point where Girardi was “spotting” Sanchez in the lineup, alternating him between the DH and catching.

Along the way, Girardi insisted that Sanchez was being given continued instruction on how to block these balls, sometimes with the teaching even be given by himself in pregame bullpen sessions.

To me, there is nothing more satisfying in baseball than seeing a player responding positively to adversity.

There were also questions about Sanchez’s ability to call a game without lapses in concentration that were leading to the wrong pitch being called at the wrong time. Or worse, setting the target in the wrong location.

And when you looked at his entire history with the Yankees, there was a reason to be concerned. In 2014, when Sanchez was playing for the Yankees Double-A team in Trenton, he was disciplined, as in benched, for several games.

It also didn’t help that the Yankees, at the beginning of August, were struggling to keep their head above water, losing more than they were winning.

A turning point

The turning point for Sanchez and the team might have come when Girardi benched Sanchez for one game, refusing to resort to the usual, “He needs a rest” spin when asked why he was doing so.

Sanchez spent that night on the top step of the dugout, in full view of YES cameras, which cut to him several times giving their commentators ample time to point out his delinquency. He could have wandered out to the bullpen sight unseen or disappeared into the clubhouse. He didn’t.

Since then, Sanchez has been a completely different player behind the plate. He’s reacting quickly and firmly to balls in the dirt, often, not just blocking them but catching them with his glove raised high as if to say, “Here, look, I’m doing it.”

And if Sanchez were improving his defense alone, the Yankees would probably take it and say, thank you. But instead, he’s becoming the offensive machine in the lineup the team desperately needs.

Aaron Judge can breathe a sigh of relief in knowing he’s not alone in bearing and accepting the responsibility of producing runs for the team. And if Didi Gregorius, Aaron Hicks, and Brett Gardner can continue to do what they do, the impact of a more productive Gary Sanchez will be even greater.

Last night, for instance, Sanchez was responsible for five of the seven runs that completed a four-game sweep of the New York Mets. His three-run home run in the second inning off Steven Matz set the tone of the game, and the Yankees never looked back, save for a slight scare in the ninth when Bryan Mitchell had “one of those games” as a reliever, needing a bailout from Dellin Betances, who earned the save.

To me, there is nothing more satisfying in baseball than seeing a player responding positively to adversity. Whether it be an injury as in the case of Greg Bird or a prolonged struggle at the plate, as it was, (yes, was) in the case of Judge, the ability to hang in there, bouncing back is always refreshing.

Joe Girardi’s mantra that the game is hard to play helped him in guiding Sanchez. But the fact that Sanchez is buying into what Girardi is teaching is an even bigger development, for both Sanchez and the team.

The hard work is done

From this point on, Sanchez should be okay. Because if he ever has a lapse again, Girardi can give him a wink and a grin that says, “I see what’s happening here. Remember?”, without the need for tough love and sharp words.

Sanchez probably needs to become more of a student of the game, studying his pitching staff more with video of their recent performances. But an easier way might be to ask Sanchez after an inning, “Why did you call for that pitch?” in that situation.

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He may or may not have a reason for doing so, but at the very least it’ll encourage him to think about his mistakes, filing them in his long-term memory for the next time that situation comes up.

I’ve had my reservations about Sanchez, and I’ve voiced them from time to time. But what I see now is the best thing that’s happened to the Yankees this season.

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