All-Star catcher Gary Sanchez (31) wears a New York Mets uniform.

On the 10th 안전놀이터(Korean time), MLB.com, the official homepage of the Major League Baseball (MLB), announced that Sanchez had agreed to a minor league contract with the Mets. Although the terms of the contract were not disclosed, MLB Network’s John Heyman revealed that Sanchez can receive $1.5 million (2 billion won) if he steps on the big league stage, and an additional $1.2 million (1.6 billion won) in incentives based on performance.

A native of the Dominican Republic, Sanchez was once an all-star catcher representing the New York Yankees. He hit 33 home runs in 2017 and was named All-Star and Silver Slugger, and ranked 22nd in the American League Most Valuable Player voting. He also hit 34 home runs in 2019, his personal best in a single season. However, after 2020, his individual performance fell due to a sluggish performance due to injuries.

The same was true even after wearing a Minnesota Twins uniform in a trade in March 2022. This season, he had a batting average of 0.164 (9 hits in 55 at-bats) in Triple-A, a minor league affiliated with San Francisco. Sanchez, who judged that advancing to the big leagues was not easy, was released as a free agent (FA) by using the right to ‘opt out’.

Several clubs, including the Los Angeles Angels, emerged as the next destination, but the final choice was the Mets. MLB.com said, “The Mets have rookies Francisco Alvarez (18 games OPS 0.584) and Thomas Nido (19 games OPS 0.266) on the big league roster as catchers, but this year’s catcher OPS (slugging percentage + on-base percentage) is 0.456, the worst in MLB.” Veteran Omar Navaez, who is on the 60-day disabled list with a left calf sprain, will likely not be able to return before June 6,” he said.

Sanchez, who needed an emergency blood transfusion and wanted to play, was caught on the radar. Sanchez’s overall performance in the big leagues (8 years) is a batting average of 0.225 with 154 homers and 401 RBIs.