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The date was June 28, 2019. Miguel Sanó was in the middle of one of his vintage slumps. He’d hit just .147 with a .544 OPS and 35 strikeouts over his last 74 plate appearances. The stretch was illuminated by a horrendous extra-innings loss to Tampa Bay, a game in which Sanó went 0-for-7.
I’m sure Twins Twitter™ was ablaze with calls to release the slugging third baseman. Sanó is certainly one of the more divisive players in Twins history. Warranted questions about his integrity, character and work ethic have loomed since his debut in 2015. The former top prospect’s rise has been anything but linear.
After a largely forgettable 2018 season, Sanó’s future in Minnesota was murky at best. He was struggling, already joining the starting nine late due to a fluke foot injury during the offseason.
One day after that 0-for-7 debacle, Sanó smacked two homers and walked in a 6-4 loss to the White Sox in Chicago. He never looked back. Sanó posted a 156 wRC+ from June 28 on, good for eighth in the American League. He blasted 25 home runs, third to only Nelson Cruz (28) and Jorge Soler (27). Sanó walked in 13.4% of his plate appearances, also top ten in the A.L. His .994 OPS outpaced George Springer (.931) and Aaron Judge (.927).
Sanó’s incredible finish earned him a contract extension from the Twins that offseason, giving them the option to keep him through 2023.
For a streaky, three-true-outcomes slugger like Sanó, a 60-game shortened season can result in one of a few scenarios. He could continue his surge from 2019 and bash all year or he could continue his trend of slow starts, which hurts much more in a limited season.
Sanó tested positive for COVID-19 before Opening Day, setting back his schedule and contributing to that oh-so-similar putrid start. Sanó hit just .148/.246/.393 over his first 19 games. The process, though, was encouraging.
https://twitter.com/NickNelsonMN/status/1292159138424918021?s=20
Nelson was right. Sanó hit .277/.346/.628 (.974 OPS) with eight homers and nine doubles over his next 26 games. Him and Nelson Cruz carried what was an otherwise ice cold offense. Sanó’s struggles in his final eight games (.097/.125/.319) was such a large part of the sample that it skewed his numbers. For the most part, he was productive in the bizarre 2020 season.
https://twitter.com/Nashwalker9/status/1300133527204196352?s=20
So far in this (very early) year, Sanó’s numbers look a lot like they did at the beginning of the last two years. The process, though, is what we need to analyze. He’s chasing balls less than ever, contributing to a 14.8% walk rate, his highest since 2015. He’s seeing the ball well but isn’t making consistent contact.
Sanó is primed to mash as soon as his timing clicks. We should be used to the slow starts, however discouraging they look to be. In my humble opinion, the past has shown us that Sanó is setting himself up to produce in a big way again this summer.
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