Sanchez getting help from Yanks to drop weight
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Gary Sanchez’s first step toward improving defensively has been to work on his body.
Matt Krause, the Yankees’ strength and conditioning director, is in the Dominican Republic working out Sanchez. According to a person with knowledge of the program, Sanchez has dropped weight.
While all of Sanchez’s defensive woes this past season weren’t weight-related, his midsection needed to tighten up and he had to lose weight in order for him to be quicker behind the plate and improve on blocking pitches.
The 6- foot -2, Sanchez appeared heavier than the 230 pounds he was listed at in the media guide.
After showing improvement defensively in 2016 when he caught the final two months of the season, Sanchez struggled mightily this past year when he was called out for his defense by former manager Joe Girardi.
Sanchez’s 16 passed balls tied the Dodgers’ Yasmani Grandal for the MLB lead and the 53 wild pitches with him catching were second to the Rangers’ Jonathan Lucroy who had 58.
Had Sanchez qualified — he didn’t because he caught in only 99 games this past season — his 38 percent (23for-60) success rate throwing out would-be base stealers would have been third among MLB catchers.
On the flip side, Sanchez hit .278 with 33 homers and 90 RBIs despite missing almost a month early in the season with a right biceps injury.
Sanchez is scheduled to be in the New York area this weekend and it’s possible he will get to meet new manager Aaron Boone, who said last week that developing a relationship with Sanchez will be very important.
“We’ve been texting back and forth, and my plan, my hope is to get together with him very casually at some point this weekend,’’ Boone said. “Again, I’ve talked to you guys a lot about relationships, and obviously, my relationship with Gary is something that I put a real high value on.
“Look, catcher in Major League Baseball, it’ s a demanding position. It ’s such an important position, and it’s a chance to impact like no other position on the field with things that don’t necessarily show up in the stat column. So just building that relationship, gaining that trust, and letting him know t hat he’s going to be very well-supported by mean dour coaching staff. That relationship has already hopefully started.’’
With Josh Bard, a former catcher, t he new bench coach, Sanchez will be working with Bard on improving defensively. Previously, Sanchez was tutored by Tony Pena, who was replaced as the first-base coach by Reggie Willits.
Boone has talked to Jim Leyland and Joe Torre about managing in the big leagues.
“Jim Leyland reached out to me. We had a really good conversation. I had a great meeting with Joe Torre [Monday] morning for a good while, and there was a lot of great advice that he imparted on me,’’ Boone said. “I feel like those are two guys for me that at different times in the year, I expect to reach out to them and bounce things off them and kind of look to them for some advice, especially as things come up that I haven’t dealt with yet.’’
One piece of advice from Leyland and Torre?
“Don’t read the papers,’’ Boone said.