How is freddy sanchez doing

I was down before I could even blink. I remember telling myself I had to battle. There were two out. If I make an out, we lose. I was fouling some off to stay alive. Then he threw me an offspeed pitch. It was so good to be able to come through in that moment. I regret not going for two on the fourth one, too.

I hit it to right fielder Vladimir Guerrero. I wish now I could have tested him right there. It could have been four. Do you remember what went through your mind when Brian Wilson fired that fastball past Nelson Cruz for the last out of the World Series? Usually after we won, I found my shortstop and we would shake hands after.

Then it was time to go crazy. I just remember a sea of black and orange, just the sea of people in the streets. They were a huge part of it. The fans were everything. Not regularly. You know me. I try to keep to myself and not bother those guys. Ish Travis Ishikawa lives out here. I see him a little bit. For a while, I was the only one not playing anymore. I never wanted to bug those guys. On the 10th anniversary of the World Series championship season, the first in San Francisco, The Chronicle is reminiscing with 10 key players from that team.

Email: hschulman sfchronicle. Most Popular. It definitely stung for several years. It does even now, a little bit. Freddy Sanchez left and the rest of the Giants including Buster Posey right greeted the crowd after the victory.

Ran on: Freddy Sanchez, who batted in the game's first run, joins his teammates in celebrating with the fans after the game. I had no doubts in my mind that I was going to be able to help the team do some special things. Curtis Compton ccompton ajc. Freddy Sanchez scores on a single by Nate Schierholtz in the eighth inning. In the offseason he had a bone spur in his right foot removed surgically to alleviate a diagnosis of ankle tendinitis.

A full recovery was anticipated by spring training of The first half of did not go as expected. He did get back to the major leagues, making his debut for the Pirates on September 9, though he hit only. A friend of his from a summer league during high school, Jack Wilson, happened to already be on the Pirates, so during those few weeks Jack and his wife, Julie, took in Freddy and Alissa as houseguests. On April 19, , Freddy and Alissa had their first child, Evan.

He started games and subbed in 32 other games. He started at his natural shortstop position just six times; most of his duty was at third and second. He finished with a. Sanchez experienced a very personal thrill on September 23 when the Pirates began a series in Los Angeles. His father had taken him to Dodgers games but this was his first visit as a major leaguer.

When Randa injured his foot on May 1, Sanchez had another chance to make a strong impression. By the time fan voting for the All-Star Game concluded, Sanchez was hitting well over. He received more than , write-in votes, the most of any player, but that was only good enough for fifth place among third basemen. Sanchez celebrated immediately with a 3-for-4, four-RBI game that raised his batting average to. Because the Pirates had the worst record in the majors, local fans needed something that exciting.

He grounded out in both of his plate appearances. Right from the start he made a strong impression. Because the Pirates continued to struggle, and ended the season with a record of , the main attraction for their fans during the final weeks of the season was Sanchez battling for the NL batting crown. It came down to October 1, the last day of the regular season. Sanchez led Miguel Cabrera of the Florida Marlins every day during the final week, but his lead narrowed from 11 percentage points to just 3 when the last games began.

Sanchez singled in the first and fourth innings that day, and wound up winning the title by 5 points. His 53 doubles also led the NL and he reached the hit mark. That hit in the fourth was the one that got him there, two years after teammate and high-school friend Jack Wilson had reached the same milestone. Jack hugged Freddy when they took the field in the next inning. Colborn was asked about the supposition in some circles that during games teams might try to read the lips of opposing players and coaches.

By that time he was able to articulate more about the final day of the season. Two hundred hits were there. The batting title was there. About a month later came another honor: receiving the 17th annual Tony Conigliaro Award. Sanchez was a little nicked up at the start of the season, and on April 5 he played one game for the Triple-A Indianapolis on a rehab assignment. Back with the Pirates, early on he became a fixture at second base. In fact, for the rest of his major-league career that was the only infield position at which he started.

The Pirates fared as poorly as they had in , so one of the few bright spots was when Sanchez was named to the NL All-Star team again, this time as the only Pirate. His batting average at the end of the season was. He hit 11 homers, the only time he reached double figures in his professional career.

On January 26, , Freddy and Alissa celebrated the birth of their second son, Ryan. As for the season, his. Things were brighter during the first half of the season. On May 29 Sanchez had one of the most noteworthy batting performances of his life, after he was almost given the night off in Chicago. Not long before, he had been mired in a 5-for slump, but on the 29th he went 6-for-6 with four runs scored and three driven in, two of which were on a homer.

The previous Pirate to have a six-hit game was Wally Backman 19 years earlier. The team, once again last in its division, had made major trades in June, and other clubs reportedly interested in acquiring Sanchez included Minnesota, Colorado, and San Francisco, 39 the latter two teams neck and neck in the NL wild-card race. His batting average at the time of the trade was. Jack Wilson was traded the same day, to Seattle. Both had said they wanted to end their careers as Pirates, though both had also turned down two-year contract extensions two weeks earlier.

Sanchez got into only 25 games for the Giants, who lost the wild-card battle to Colorado but finished with a record of , which had to make for a much more optimistic offseason for Sanchez than usual. Before suiting up for the Giants in Sanchez spent the week of May in minor-league rehab stints. In , the former top 50 prospect was moved to the bullpen where he did do better, but still unimpressive. His By , Alderson, who was now 24 and far from a prospect put up his best season since his run while being part of the Giants organization.

At Triple-A through 42 innings, Alderson had a 2. The former top prospect brought his walk rate down to 5. But the Pittsburgh Pirates really had no reason to hang on to Alderson any longer.

On July 12, , Tim Alderson, a guy who was once seen as a future rotation building block for Bucs, was sent to the Baltimore Orioles for Russ Canzler. The then year-old Canzler never played a game in a Pirates uniform, nor did Alderson for the Orioles.

Meanwhile, in San Francisco, Sanchez finished out the year on a sour note, collecting just 29 hits, a walk:strikeout ratio, and only two extra base hits in his final plate appearances. The Giants were able to re-sign Sanchez to a two-year contract, and played a fair role in the Giants World Series run. He got plate appearances and batted. He also put up solid defensive numbers.

Despite his -3 DRS, he had 5. In , Sanchez missed most of the year after signing another extension to take him through the season. This was the last year Sanchez would play as he only played 60 games and stepped to the plate times.

In July, he would have to undergo shoulder surgery, which he never recovered from. Freddy Sanchez only had about a full year of above average production in San Francisco before getting injured and missing the rest of the years that remained on his contract. More MLB News ». View all MLB Sites. More AL East News ». View all AL East Sites.