When the Braves signed veteran pitcher Anibal Sanchez to a minor-league contract March 16, 2018, he had been discarded by two teams since the end of the previous season.
The Detroit Tigers declined to pick up his option in November 2017, and the Minnesota Twins released him from a non-guaranteed contract five days before the Braves signed him.
But look at Anibal Sanchez now: He’ll start Game 3 of the World Series for the starting-pitching-rich Washington Nationals on Friday night.
Sanchez revived his career with the Braves last year, making 24 starts and posting a 2.83 ERA, and he cashed in by signing a two-year contract worth a guaranteed $19 million with Washington ($8 million this year, $9 million next year and a $2 million buyout if the Nationals decline a $12 million option for 2021).
Sanchez will follow Game 1 starter Max Scherzer and Game 2 starter Stephen Strasburg to the World Series mound for the Nats, who lead the heavily favored Houston Astros two games to none.
Amazing, how far Sanchez has come since March 16, 2018.
When he joined the Braves in spring training then, they hardly had high expectations. Manager Brian Snitker said that day: "We brought him in to get a look, see where he's at. He's a depth piece. I mean, who knows? He might make our club. We'll evaluate. He's in shape."
Sanchez, 35, had some stellar seasons with the Marlins and Tigers earlier in his career, including a fourth-place finish in the American League Cy Young vote in 2013. But his career seemed about finished when he posted ERAs of 5.87 and 6.41 with Detroit in 2016 and 2017.
Then he got back on track with the Braves last year, far outperforming the $1 million they paid him, and he justified the Nationals’ much larger investment this season by going 11-8 with a 3.85 ERA in 30 regular-season starts.
Friday’s start will be his third this postseason, and the first two were exceptional. He held the Dodgers to one run on four hits in five innings of National League Division Series Game 3, striking out nine. He had a no-hitter until two outs in the eighth inning against the Cardinals in NL Championship Series Game 1 on Oct. 11.
Sanchez reflected a bit on his improbable journey of recent seasons during a news conference at Nationals Park on Thursday.
He acknowledged that he wondered if he’d get another chance after the struggles of 2016-17. “For me, I (was) just taking one more year … last year, 2018,” he said. He recalled telling himself after being released by the Twins that spring: “OK, whatever happens is going to happen. I (am not) going to force anything.”
“I got an opportunity with the Braves and (showed) that I can still pitch on this level,” Sanchez said. “And now I’m here.”
