Orioles nab former Yankees' All Star catcher in late night deal

MLB's Winter Meetings won't officially start until Monday but the Orioles have quite the night on Saturday, kicking off the winter season with a bang. In addition to signing outfielder Tyler O'Neill, the Orioles have reportedly come to terms on a one-year, $8.5 million contract with former Yankees' star catcher Gary Sanchez.

Sanchez was with the Yanks from 2015-2021. During that time, he made two All Star appearances, finished second in Rookie of the Year voting in 2016, and won a Silver Slugger award that same year. Since leaving New York, Sanchez has traveled a bit. He's played for four teams in the past three seasons, most recently spending the entirety of 2024 with the Milwaukee Brewers.

One of the things former O's catcher James McCann was lauded for was his leadership. In that sense, Sanchez has huge shoes to fill and it's unclear how he'll handle the role he's been given. But on paper, Sanchez seems a fine fit for the Orioles and their backup catcher duties.

Like McCann, Statcast doesn't love Sanchez's defense. Statcast puts him in the 20th percentile for Blocks Above Average and has him slightly below average in terms of framing, though he does have a decent arm and Caught Stealing percentage. Statcast has McCann as far worse in terms of blocks and framing, for what it's worth.

Orioles news: Baltimore signs former Yankees All Star catcher Gary Sanchez to one-year deal

On the offensive side, Sanchez is what he is at this point. He's still got some pop left in the bat. He hit 11 homers in just 89 games last season, and hit 19 in 75 games the year prior. For his career, Sanchez has a .463 SLG and had a number of seasons with slugging percentages over .500 during his best years in New York.

With the Orioles working on moving the left field wall back in toward home plate, Sanchez could see some decent returns hitting to that part of the park. He's a very pull-heavy hitter to begin with. His 48.3% pull rate in 2024 was over 11 percentage points higher than league average so we can expect him to put that part of the park in play often.

Sanchez likely won't get enough playing time to get back into the 30 home run range like he had been previously. He'll give Adley Rutschman some much needed time off and could potentially see some time in the DH role working in a platoon-type role with guys like O'Neill, along with lefties Heston Kjerstad and Ryan O'Hearn.

At the end of the day, it's a bit of a bummer to lose McCann and the energy he brought to Baltimore. But if all goes right, this Sanchez signing could be a solid one for the Orioles. If Sanchez is able to give the O's some strong offense, we'll all be happier for it.