Marlins’ overview: Sanchez the answer in center?

Marlins’ overview: Sanchez the answer in center?

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By Joe Frisaro @ManOn2nd

MIAMI — The answer of who should play center field for the Miami Marlins was in front of us all along. Still, many missed it.

Credit to the Marlins, for seeing it. Credit to general manager Kim Ng, and the front office for sticking to their conviction when others doubted.

Jesus Sanchez is the Marlins center fielder.

Let’s end the conversation that he’s not. Let’s put to rest trade speculation that the organization needs a true center fielder, whatever that means in today’s baseball.

As the industry has gone more offensive minded, so many of those natural center fielders are really fourth outfielders. They’re defensive specialists, who don’t hit enough to regularly stay in the lineup. There’s not many Andruw Jones’ anymore, you know, a perennial Gold Glove winner and middle of the lineup threat.

Yes, you have Byron Buxton in Minnesota. He fits the bill. If he can stay healthy, the sky is the limit for Buxton. First, he has to stay healthy.

There’s Bryan Reynolds with the Pirates, a player the Marlins’ pursued in trade talks in the spring. Really good player. To Miami, he wasn’t worth parting with top prospects.

But when the decision was made to sign Jorge Soler to play left field, the Marlins’ search for a true center fielder quieted. They did continue to check the market, but weren’t going to overreach. The fact Avisail Garcia had signed in the fall, meant that Sanchez was moving from corner outfield to center.

The decision then was to go with a more offensive approach to the outfield, including center field. The logic wasn’t wrong.

Now, is Sanchez a Gold Glover out there? No. He doesn’t need to be. He just needs to be average, and make the routine plays. If he does that, he’s fine. The 24-year-old certainly can do that.

A little more than a week into the season, and the fact is Sanchez continues to get better. He’s scratching the surface of what he can be.

He runs well enough, and he’s athletic enough to handle the position on a regular basis. He just needs more experience, and the Marlins are giving it to them. When they make defensive replacements late, they are using Bryan De La Cruz in left field in place of Soler. Sanchez stays in center. That should tell you something.

If you are among those who overlooked the fact that Sanchez has been the answer all along, don’t feel badly. Not many have been able to truly figure Sanchez out. He knows why.

“I consider myself a weird player, honestly,” Sanchez said through an interpreter. “During Spring Training, I was completely off. I don’t know if you guys noticed it.”

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Sanchez’s timing at the plate was a little off in the spring, and it carried over into the opening series at San Francisco. The lefty slugger was on pitches, but just missing, often fouling them off. Then, at the Angels, he had a two-home run game, and he was on track. That carried over into the Marlins first two home games, both wins over the Phillies at loanDepot Park.

“It just clicked,” Sanchez said. “It came to me. Like I said, I consider myself a little weird.”

Granted, it’s only a week. But looking at Fangraphs, Sanchez (184) ranks fourth among all MLB center fielders in wRC+. Those in front of him are Brandon Nimmo (218), Buxton (200) and Mike Trout (195).

“Every year, he continues to learn. He knows what he’s doing up there. He’s understanding how to create a game plan. He knows how pitchers are trying to pitch him now. You’re watching him taking the next steps. He’s not up there just swinging.”

— Marlins bench coach James Rowson

When the Marlins acquired Sanchez via trade with the Rays in 2018, he was already a top 100-caliber prospect. Still, he always was down the list of outfielders.

The Marlins then were testing out Lewis Brinson and Monte Harrison at center, and they drafted JJ Bleday and Peyton Burdick. They had Connor Scott, who has since been traded to the Pirates for Jacob Stallings, in their system. Sanchez was overlooked.

Before the 2020 season started, the Marlins played a couple of exhibition games against the Braves in Atlanta. Sanchez was brought along for roster depth, even though he knew after those two games, he was going back to Jacksonville to be at the alternate training site.

Sanchez homered in one of those games. I remember then thinking: “Are we talking about the wrong prospects and not paying enough attention to Sanchez?”

I based this, not just because he homered. It was the swing, the athleticism, the “I belong” attitude. Same thing holds true today. I’m not touting him because of his numbers are strong first week. This column is being written because he’s got a chance to be really good. And good enough in center.

According to a source, San Francisco Giants executives told Marlins’ executives that Sanchez was one of the main Miami players who scared them. A veteran scout I spoke with at the loanDepot park also is looking at Sanchez as a legitimate regular who can handle center field.

This may surprise some. But Sanchez has known it all along. That home run he hit in Atlanta before the 2020 season helped confirm that to himself. Now, his confidence is growing by the day, and it’s fun to watch.

“I knew it was my first time, but mentally, I’ve always believed in myself,” Sanchez said when asked about his ’20 exhibition homer at Atlanta. “I knew I was going to be a big leaguer. I knew that I could be a big leaguer. That was something that was always helping me, mentally, visualizing that. That did really help me visualizing that I was going to be a big leaguer.”

If you didn’t see it before, it should become much clearer now that Sanchez, listed at 6-foot-3, 222-pounds, is Miami’s answer in center.

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