Giants sign Gold Glove winner Yolmer Sanchez to bolster infield

The San Francisco Giants signed Gold Glove-winning second baseman Yolmer Sanchez to a minor league deal on Tuesday.

The search for value is on here in the final stages of the offseason, and the San Francisco Giants may have just found a nice under-the-radar infield addition in Yolmer Sanchez.

With rookie Mauricio Dubon expected to break camp as the starting second baseman and utility man Donovan Solano likely to experience at least some level of regression, finding a left-handed hitting infielder to round out the bench was a clear item on the to-do list.

It now appears that void has been filled with the addition of the switch-hitting Sanchez.

As Rosenthal mentioned, Sanchez apparently feels he will have a chance to play his way into the starting second base gig in San Francisco.

That is not necessarily an indictment on Dubon. Instead, he could wind up sliding over to shortstop if declining veteran Brandon Crawford sees a reduced role in 2020.

So what does Sanchez bring to the table?

The 27-year-old hit just .252/.318/.321 for a 73 OPS+ with 26 extra-base hits in 555 plate appearances for the Chicago White Sox last season.

Despite that middling offensive production, he was still a 2.1 WAR player thanks to his stellar defensive work at second base.

His 11 Defensive Runs Saved were a career-high and earned him AL Gold Glove honors, and he has also proven to be an above-average defender at third base when called upon.

After earning $4.625 million last season, the White Sox opted to non-tender him rather than paying him a salary north of $5 million. That said, he has two years of team control remaining, so if he does play well enough to seize the starting job the Giants will have the opportunity to bring him back in 2021.

First things first, Sanchez will need to win a spot on the Opening Day roster, as he will be in camp on a minor league deal.

There’s a great chance that will happen, especially with the addition of the 26th roster spot, and he could prove to be a positive contributor on a no-risk deal in 2020.