Sanchez snaps out of slump just in time

Gary Sanchez was hitless in his previous 18 at-bats when he came to the plate in the bottom of the seventh and the Yankees trailing by three runs.

The catcher — who served as the DH in Tuesday’s Game 4 because he’s had a hard time catching Sonny Gray — had picked a bad time for his worst stretch of the season.

But with Didi Gregorius on third and one out, Sanchez drilled a sacrifice fly to right to help spark a 6-4 comeback win over the Astros to tie the ALCS.

An inning later, Sanchez topped that by belting a tworun double to right-center that gave the Yankees the lead for good.

“You know, I never thought about that I was 0-18,” Sanchez said through an interpreter. “I didn’t put any pressure on myself regarding that. I just kept working hard with my coaches. I kept doing my job. I got my first hit tonight, and I’m hoping that they will keep on coming to me [Wednesday].”

Whether his turnaround at the plate was related to the fact he was the DH is up for debate, but Sanchez wasn’t buying it.

“Did it help me? I don’t think so, because I had the same my approach, even when I was catching,” Sanchez said. “Some of that stuff you can’t really control.”

That he hit well as the DH wasn’t all that surprising, since Sanchez had 75 plate appearances as a DH this season and had five homers and an OPS of .921, as opposed to his OPS of .864 as a catcher.

Aaron Judge said he knew it was just a matter of time.

“Gary has been getting pitched tough this whole series in the postseason,” Judge said. “He’s been battling. He’s been in the cages doing his work, getting prepared to the right way. Sometimes it won’t show up in the first or second game. But sometimes it shows up in the ALCS in a big situation like that.” The manager agreed. “He’s a really good hitter,” manager Joe Girardi said. “I’ve seen Hall of Famers struggle in a series or two in the playoffs. It’s just part of it. But eventually it’s going to turn for him and it did in a big way tonight.”

The sac fly was significant and got the Yankees to within two runs, but it was his opposite-field double that really made an impact. After Judge tied the game at 4-4 with a double to left off Houston closer Ken Giles, Didi Gregorius followed with a single that put runners on the corners with one out.

That’s when Sanchez came through with his f irst hit since Game 4 of the ALDS, when he homered against the Indians.

“When I went out there, I was just looking to shorten up my swing and put the ball in play,” Sanchez said of the double. “Make good contact.”