Rule 5 Decisions: Juan Sanchez

From spring sensation to summer forget-me-not

For the next couple of weeks we’ll be examining the major cases of Rule 5 protection candidates, to see who the Giants might choose to add to the 40-man roster this year. The Rule 5 protection deadline this year is November 19. So far in the Rule 5 Decisions series, we’ve looked at:

• Setting Up the Rule 5 Decisions

• Cole Waites

Once again, before getting to the “real” Rule 5 protection candidates, I want to look at a player who is in a slightly different bucket, left-handed pitcher Juan Sanchez, who is exactly four World Series wins + 24 hours away from possible free agency. As was the case with our last profile, Sanchez is in a strange position heading into this decision, as he spent almost two-thirds of the year on the injured list, never appearing in a game after June 14.

Normally, that wouldn’t make for a great argument for addition to the crowded 40-man roster. But Sanchez is a player who has gradually and steadily opened up eyes in his long, seven-year journey through the minor leagues. As I get ready for this series (and much of the content to come in the winter), I send texts out to various scouts and industry sources asking whom the Giants might be considering protecting, and, after one pretty obvious player that we’ll be getting to in due time in this series, Sanchez was probably the name that popped up most often in these texts. He’s a guy that a lot of organizations have on their radar. The health situation definitely complicates things — and it will complicate my bottom-line verdict today, I can tell you that for sure — but the soon-to-be 24-year-old lefty has done an enviable job of making his case despite a half-year on the shelf being the most recent line on his resume.

So, let’s take a look at a pitcher who has steadfastly worked his way up the ladder, only to reach a fork in the road at the threshold of making the big leagues.