Sanchez ready to make first Astros start today against Mariners.
As righthander Aaron Sanchez anticipates his first start in an Astros uniform tonight, he looks forward to being around some of the best pitchers in the game, absorbing all he can as he tries to get a promising career back on track.
“If you want to pick a team to be on, this is the one,” Sanchez said. ”I can’t wait to be part of it.”
And as for reliever Joe Biagini, who joined Sanchez in coming to Houston in a Wednesday deadline deal with the Toronto Blue Jays, he has goals and expectations as well.
“I was promised therapy puppies,” Biagini said, straightfaced. “I haven’t found them yet.”
Clearly, it’s a fine mixture of the earnest and the droll joining the Astros’ clubhouse as part of the July 31 makeover that included catcher Martin Maldonado and righthander Zack Greinke.
Maldonado already has had an impact in his return, tagging out two runners at the plate in Houston’s win Thursday at Cleveland, and now Sanchez (3-14, 6.07 ERA, 99 strikeouts in 112.2 innings) takes center stage tonight against the Mariners.
He last pitched July 23 against Tampa, striking out 10 over 52⁄3 innings in a no-decision, as he continues to work to reverse what has been a precipitous, injury-filled fall from an All-Star season in 2016.
“It’s no secret that they know what they’re doing here,” Sanchez said. “They know where I’ve been and what I’ve done and where I’m heading.
“I’m sure there are things that are on their mind, and there are things on my mind. There has been an open line of communication since the trade happened, and I’m thrilled to see what they have in mind for me and to share my thoughts with them and bounce ideas off each other.”
Sanchez went 15-2 with 161 strikeouts in 2016 and was an AllStar in the second of back-to-back seasons in which he had playoff wins for the Blue Jays.
Since then, he served four stints on the injured list in 2017 and also dealt with hand injuries last year, with one trip to the 60-day disabled list and season-ending surgery in September to repair a ligament in his right index finger.
“It’s been a crazy two years,” he said. “A lot of things that people don’t really know about have gone on for me to finally start to feel like myself again and turn the corner.”
He didn’t miss a start this season for the Blue Jays but also hasn’t won since April 27, with 11 consecutive losses and four no-decisions after a 3-1 start.
“He has a challenge ahead of him,” said manager A.J. Hinch. “He has good stuff across the board, and his last couple of starts have been very good.
“He has had some adversity with injuries and performance and questions about whether he was going to be in the rotation or not. This is a fresh start for him, but also an opportunity for him to learn and grow.”
Hinch said his goal for Sanchez “is to figure out how to untap the good version of him, because it’s electrifying.”
The Astros have had success in improving pitchers through analytics and coaching, and both Sanchez and Biagini said they hope to follow that path.
“See Charlie Morton. See Collin McHugh, See Will Harris. See Wade Miley. See Justin Verlander,” Hinch said. “We are arguably the best at trying to squeeze the most out of every pitcher we have acquired.”
Biagini, in fact, has other metrics in which he wants to improve.
“They have established a reputation at being good at what they do, and for them to choose someone like me and want us to be part of it, that’s a cool thing,” he said.
“The thing I’m most excited about is that they are going to work on my words per joke analytic.”
As for his more traditional measurables, Biagini is 3-1 in 50 relief appearances with the Blue Jays, with 50 strikeouts and 12 holds as Toronto’s setup man.
Both arrive with good recommendations from former Toronto teamamtes Aldemys Diaz and Roberto Osuna.
“We are not only getting good arms but really good human beings and really good teammates,” Osuna said. “”Both are in the best mood to do whatever the team needs. There’s no doubt that they are going to help us win the World Series.”
Osuna said the Astros rightly deserve their reputation for inspiring productive change in new arrivals.
“You improve in every area,” he said. “The key for me is having that communication and being able to share things back and forth. A lot of information gets passed along about what your arm can do and what your body can do for you.”
Hinch said his goal for Sanchez on Friday “is to be the best pitcher he can be. If it’s five innings, great. If it’s nine innings great. If it’s anywhere in between, great. … He’s going to have some good outings for us.”
And, at some point, perhaps there will be puppies, too.