1 Mets minor league free agent signing that will become quickly insignificant

A necessary part of every offseason is to load up on MLB-experienced veterans for the minor leagues. There is no shortage of this ready to begin the year in Syracuse for the New York Mets. They could field a decent lineup with these players if it was five years ago.

With some of the offseason minor league signings, there is intrigue. Can Luke Voit make it back to the majors and slug home runs as the DH? Will Taylor Kohlwey translate his Triple-A success into becoming a quality bench player in the majors?

One of those minor league signings without much of a storyline is Yolmer Sanchez. His signing is going to become quickly insignificant.

The Mets minor league signing of Yolmer Sanchez won’t matter

Sanchez is actually returning to the Mets. Forgot he ever played here? He appeared in 3 games for the 2022 club. He never hit. Sanchez was strictly a defensive replacement and one-time a pinch runner in August during a stretch of six days.

A Gold Glove winner in 2019 for the Chicago White Sox, he’s your prototypical all-glove and hope a ball bounces funny if he makes contact at the plate type of infielder. Most of the last three seasons has been spent in the minor leagues. He made his second return to the Atlanta Braves in 2023 where he spent the entire year in Triple-A batting .236/.381/.350. The impressive OBP aided in large part to 89 walks in 481 trips to the plate will do little to get him onto the Mets roster.

It’s not a bad addition to the Mets by any stretch of the imagination. Good fielders are necessary. It was a priority of David Stearns this offseason to load up on them. But as a guy not really equipped enough to play shortstop, the Mets have far better options.

If Francisco Lindor gets hurt, Joey Wendle is going to play the position. If they really need to, they can turn to Jose Iglesias for some defensive help at the position. The same depth might even apply for Jeff McNeil or any of the third basemen. Sanchez is behind several on the depth chart already. As the season moves along, he will fall behind Luisangel Acuna, too. Zack Short is a candidate to survive waivers and become a more favorable option.

Any of the relievers with mild MLB experience the Mets signed this season to minor league deals can wow them in Syracuse and become a player they turn to. They’re all on close to equal footing to begin the year. Even someone such as Trayce Thompson who has proven his bat can’t keep up with major league pitching could have a more significant role on the Mets. His ability to play center field carries some weight.

For Sanchez, the destiny will sadly have him muttering around in Triple-A with maybe another short stint in the majors at most. His main position isn’t one where you can excuse a poor bat in favor of good defense. Outside of a post-trade deadline sell-off and the Mets hold back the prospects until September, the Sanchez signing looks like one of the more insignificant minor league additions of the winter.