Jeff Tully
Freddy Sanchez will have to wait a little longer to get a chance to
play with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
On Saturday, the former Burbank High and Glendale Community
College baseball star infielder was optioned to triple-A Nashville,
in an attempt to give Sanchez more time to get his game up to speed.
Sanchez, 26, was on a 20-day rehabilitation assignment with the
Sounds and is battling back from offseason surgery on his right
ankle.
Under major league baseball rules, Sanchez had to be recalled from
his rehab assignment in the minors before being optioned to triple A.
Sanchez hit .206 in 13 games with the Sounds. He didn't hit any
home runs and had just three runs batted in. However, his troubles at
the plate weren't totally unexpected. Sanchez hasn't played since
August, when he was sidelined with tendinitis in his ankle.
Sanchez -- who played third base, shortstop and second base for
the Boston Red Sox before being traded to Pittsburgh almost a year
ago -- has not played a game for the Pirates.
In 32 major-league games with the Red Sox, the 1996 Foothill
League Player of the Year had a .220 average (11 for 32) with nine
runs scored, four RBI and two doubles.
Sanchez, who was taken in the 30th round of the 1996 first-year
player draft by the Atlanta Braves as a senior at Burbank, chose
instead to attend GCC and played for two other colleges before being
drafted by the Red Sox in the 11th round in 2000.
He was brought up to Boston in May 2003 and used sporadically --
mostly as a late-game defensive replacement.
He was flawless in the field, playing three positions without
committing an error last season for the Red Sox.
His biggest accomplishment came June 14, 2003, when Sanchez came
close to tying a major league record.
In a game against the Houston Astros, he got the start at third
base and had 10 assists, one away from tying the all-time mark.
Sanchez, a natural shortstop who didn't play third base in high
school, made some amazing plays, robbing Astros batters of base hits.
Although known for his hitting, Sanchez received national
attention in 2002 for his hitting.
Playing for the double-A Trenton Thunder, he batted .328 (102 for
311) and enjoyed a 27-game hitting streak from May 15 to June 24. He
also reached base safely in his final 43 games.
