NEW YORK — The team that ended the Yankees’ season is about to play for a title. So is a familiar face from the Bronx.
Tampa Bay swept the New York Yankees out of the ALDS on Oct. 7, finishing the job with a 4-3 win in Game 3 at Yankee Stadium. The Rays will meet the Milwaukee Brewers in the World Series.
Milwaukee’s backup catcher is Gary Sanchez.
The 33-year-old has had only one postseason plate appearance this fall, but it mattered. In Game 2 of the NLDS against San Diego, Milwaukee trailed 3-2 with two outs and two runners on in the bottom of the ninth. Sanchez worked a full-count walk. Jackson Chourio followed with a two-run, walk-off single.
Back in New York, the catching position finished the year as one of the roster’s open questions.
Austin Wells caught 122 games and hit .186 with a .292 on-base percentage, 14 home runs and 32 RBIs. His glove carried his value. He ranked in the 95th percentile in pitch framing and the 92nd percentile in blocking, according to Baseball Savant.
His bat also came alive late. Wells posted an OPS above .800 across August and September, then went 5 for 15 with four RBIs in the postseason. Ali Sanchez, no relation, finished the season as the backup.
Owner Hal Steinbrenner addressed the offense on Wednesday, two weeks after the sweep. He blamed the lineup, not the pitching staff, for much of the October failure.
“As a whole, they were very inconsistent when it came to run scoring,” Steinbrenner said, “and they were inconsistent for long periods of time.”
The Yankees will review their coaching staff and hitting approach this winter. Catching depth is part of that conversation.
That is where the name of a former Yankees All-Star catcher has resurfaced.
A door left open
Sanchez, whose contract with Milwaukee carries a mutual option for 2027, has signaled he would be open to a Yankees reunion. He made the comments in Spanish in an interview with YouTuber JoezMcfly during Milwaukee’s run to the pennant.
The interviewer told Sanchez that Yankees fans were still supporting him. Sanchez reflected on his place in franchise history.
“A lot of fans will remember me for a long time. I also put records there in the franchise that they will always mention me. And it’s the team that I’ve lasted the longest,” Sanchez said.
He then addressed his future. The option for 2027 requires both sides to agree. If either declines, Sanchez becomes a free agent after the World Series.
“And nothing, thanks for the support. Imagine, I’m still good, but you never know. I’m a free man,” Sanchez said.
He closed with a line that left the possibility hanging.
“Life gives you a lot of turns, you never know,” Sanchez said.
The records he mentioned
Sanchez spent seven seasons with the Yankees, from 2015 to 2021. He hit 138 home runs for the Yankees in 538 games with an .804 OPS, according to Baseball-Reference.
He reached 100 career home runs in his 355th game in August 2019. That made him the fastest catcher and the fastest American League player to the mark. Only Ryan Howard, at 325 games, got there faster in major league history.
Weeks later, he hit his 34th homer of 2019, breaking the Yankees’ single-season record for a catcher. The previous mark of 33 was also his, set in 2017. He made two All-Star teams and won the 2017 Silver Slugger Award.
The Yankees traded him to Minnesota in March 2022 in the deal that brought back Josh Donaldson, Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Ben Rortvedt. He has since played for the Twins, Mets, Padres, Orioles and Brewers.
The on-base gap behind the plate
Sanchez’s batting average this season was low. His on-base skills were not.
He hit .209 with a .349 on-base percentage and a .422 slugging percentage in 86 games, with 12 homers and 38 RBIs. He drew 46 walks in 275 plate appearances, a walk rate of about 16.7%.
That on-base percentage was 57 points higher than Wells’ .292. Sanchez also out-slugged him by 90 points, .422 to .332.
The cost was modest. The former Yankees catcher signed with Milwaukee in February for $1.75 million. He missed most of 2025 with Baltimore because of wrist and knee injuries, appearing in 29 games, then stayed healthy enough this year to catch and serve as designated hitter.
Brewers manager Pat Murphy described the role when Milwaukee signed him.
“It’ll be a nice addition, both as a catcher and sometimes a DH, we could pinch-hit him,” Murphy said.
Sanchez’s focus for now is the World Series against the Rays. His mutual option will be decided after the Series ends. If it is declined, Sanchez will be free to sign anywhere, including with the Yankees.
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