Predicting landing spots for 4 former Yankees still stuck in free agency

Gary Sánchez Prediction: Arizona Diamondbacks

The longer Sánchez stays on the market, the more likely the Boston Red Sox are to be tempted into saying, “F*** it” and extending an offer to the slugger who — let’s face it — did his most damage over the Monster (and against David Price).

It’s true that Boston has a vacancy at catcher, with Reese McGuire currently topping the depth chart. However, if the Sox signed Sánchez, they would … still have a vacancy at catcher. Sánchez’s defensive metrics did increase in 2022 (to the point that they were above-average, per Jon Heyman), but he’s still a bat-first player whose offense was below-average in Minnesota. Boston would be better served signing a playoff-tested hitter in Yuli Gurriel to DH (alongside Justin Turner) and back up first base, as has been rumored, rather than trying their luck with Sánchez.

Our best guess is the Arizona Diamondbacks, who are relatively set at catcher (ex-Jays top prospect Gabriel Moreno, Carson Kelly), but could use an upgrade at DH (Josh Rojas currently atop the depth chart).

The D-Backs are closer than most believe to contention, even considering they’re stuck in a division with dragons. If Sánchez busts, this’ll be a relatively low-impact signing. If he booms, Arizona could prosper, rather than starting a .740-OPSing utility infielder in the DH slot everyday.

And also … we sure they’re set at catcher? We know for a fact that Carson Kelly, who hit .211 with a .616 OPS last year, is part of the solution? OK! Gotcha! Arizona over Boston for Sánchez, please, to avoid the headache.

And speaking of potential Bostonians…