Gary Sanchez Will Play Whatever Role Baltimore Orioles Want Next Season

Gary Sanchez is excited about his opportunity with the Baltimore Orioles and is ready for whatever is needed.

Aug 4, 2024; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Milwaukee Brewers catcher Gary Sanchez (99) prepares to bat against the Washington Nationals during the fourth inning at Nationals Park. / Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images

One of the moves that the Baltimore Orioles made early on in free agency was signing catcher Gary Sanchez.

The two sides agreed to a one-year, $8.5 million deal, as he could be in line to take over the backup catcher job. It was held for the last two seasons by James McCann, but he remains a free agent.

Sanchez will present the Orioles with an upgrade in the lineup over McCann, as he can still provide some pop even in a part-time role. 

In 245 at-bats last season with the Milwaukee Brewers, he hit 11 home runs. With the San Diego Padres for 234 at-bats in 2023, he launched 19. McCann has 34 home runs in the last five seasons combined.

If his bat gets hot, it could lead to manager Brandon Hyde deploying him as the designated hitter. That was a weakness at times last season, as Eloy Jimenez, an acquisition at the trade deadline from the Chicago White Sox, didn’t have as big of an impact as hoped.

Whatever the team needs from him, the veteran backstop is willing to do, even if it includes going out in the field.

"If they want me to be the designated hitter, I'll be more than happy to do that. If they want me to catch, I'll do that as well. And even if they want to put me at 1st base, I'll be more than happy to do that as well,” Sanchez said, via Jake Rill of MLB.com on X, when asked about his role with the team in 2025.

With only 16.2 innings under his belt at first base, and with Ryan Mountcastle and Ryan O’Hearn still on the roster, Sanchez likely won’t factor into the mix there too much. But, it is encouraging to see that he is willing to do whatever the team happens to need to help them win games.

That is the No. 1 goal the veteran catcher has heading into 2025.

"They have a lot of great young talent, a really exciting group, and I'm looking forward to going out there and helping in any way that I can to support this team and help this team win,” Sanchez said.

Given how much money they committed to him, Baltimore seems to have big plans for him this upcoming campaign. $8.5 million is a lot of money, especially when there were other holes on the roster that seemed to be much more pressing than backup catcher.