Miami Marlins Preview: Jesus Sanchez and “What’s in a Name?”

The Miami Marlins have employed three players in their history by the name of Jesus Sanchez.

Lefty-pitcher Jesús Sánchez played for the Florida Marlins from 1998 through 2001, going 23-32 with a 5.06 ERA in 142 appearances, including 80 starts. 20-year-old right-hander Jesus Sanchez is a pitcher in the Miami Marlins system, last with the Rookie-level GCL Marlins in 2019. He’s 5-5 with a 4.37 ERA in four seasons of rookie ball, with 45 walks and 72 K’s in 82 1/3 innings.

Outfielder Jesus Sanchez is a highly ranked prospect currently on the Miami Marlins 40-man roster. He’s ranked number 58 for Baseball America, number 80 for Baseball Prospectus, and also number 80 by the MLB Pipeline. The Pipeline also has Sanchez ranked number four in the Marlins system.

This Sanchez is a six-foot-three, 220 lb. outfielder from Higuey, DR. Now 22-years-old, the Miami Marlins gained him along with major league reliever Ryne Stanek for pitchers Nick Anderson and Trevor Richards.

Sanchez first started gaining some notoriety after his 2017 campaign at the Single-A level for the Bowling Green Hot Rods in the Midwest League. In 117 contests, he slashed .305/.348/.478 with team-leading figures of 15 homers and 82 RBI. He led the team by 51 bases with 227 total bases. After that, MLB Pipeline had him at number 57 overall, while BA and FanGraphs both had him at number 49.

The Pipeline rates Sanchez’ run tool at the MLB “average” of 50, and the other four tools all at slightly above average, at 55. That translates to a .270 average and somewhere around 19-to-22 home runs over a full major league season, according to FanGraphs.

Though Sanchez has a smooth left-handed swing, tremendous bat speed and a knack for making hard contact, he’ll have to make some adjustments to reach his offensive ceiling. His lack of plate discipline has cut into his production at the upper levels, and his propensity to hit the ball on the ground doesn’t allow him to fully tap into his power potential. If he can become more selective and drive more balls in the air, he could be a .280 hitter with 25 homers on an annual basis. – MLB Pipeline

After the trade, Sanchez appeared in 17 games at the Triple-A level with the now nonexistent New Orleans Baby Cakes in the Pacific Coast League. He was 16-for-65 from the plate, with four homers and nine RBI. He also drew nine walks and struck out 15 times, showing an improvement over his past metrics, albeit in a smaller sample size.

This spring, Sanchez got into nine contests for the Marlins, and went six-for-12 from the plate with a triple, a homer, and three RBI. We could only wish his resultant 1.455 OPS was sustainable, but we know that it’s really not.

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But a future in which Sanchez consistently tops .800 OPS is definitely within reach. Incidentally, his career minor league OPS currently sits at .801. Early on Tuesday, he was optioned to the Wichita Wind Surge, formerly the Baby Cakes, in the PCL.

Sanchez will almost surely make his major league debut with the Miami Marlins sometime this season. He’ll likely be one of the first three offensive call-ups when injury and/or poor performance start to rear their heads.

Check back here tomorrow for another top-rated Sanchez in the Miami Marlins system. And keep checking in to keep up on all your Marlins news.