Anibal Sanchez is hittin’ the mound…
The Atlanta Braves will start the 34-year-old Venezuelan veteran right-handed pitcher in Game 2 of the National League Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, manager Brian Snitker confirmed.
Sanchez will face Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw on Friday.
Game 1 on Thursday in Los Angeles will see the Braves’ Mike Foltynewicz oppose Hyun-Jin Ryu.
Sanchez was 7-6 with a 2.83 ERA in 24 starts for Atlanta during the regular season.
Aníbal Sánchez may be return to the pitcher’s mound soon…
The 30-year-old Venezuelan professional baseball pitcher for the Detroit Tigers threw about 50 pitches in a simulated game Sunday and could possibly be activated this week.
Sánchez, the right-hander who holds the Tigers franchise record for strikeouts in a single game (17), went on the disabled list Aug. 9 with a strained right chest muscle. The simulated game came before the before the Tigers played an away game against Kansas City Royals.
Tigers manager Brad Ausmus says if Sanchez feels good the next few days “my guess is he’d be activated Wednesday or Thursday.” Sanchez is 8-5 with a 3.46 ERA in 21 starts, and Ausmus says he could be used in relief.
Catcher Alex Avila has not played since Sept. 14 because of a concussion but could be available Monday if he feels fine and passes concussion clearance tests. Avila is hitting .223 with 11 home runs and 47 RBIs.
Aníbal Sánchez is the Motor City’s $80 million dollar man…
The 28-year-old Venezuelan free-agent right-hander has reached an agreement with the Detroit Tigers on a five-year, $80 million deal, agent Gene Mato confirmed to ESPN.com Friday.
Sánchez is 48-51 with a 3.75 career ERA for the Tigers and Miami Marlins. He has been regarded by many observers as the second-most attractive starting pitcher on this winter’s free-agent market, behind Zack Greinke.
Sánchez reportedly had reached agreement on a five-year, $75 million contract Thursday with the Chicago Cubs, but the deal apparently went south and he elected to return to Detroit.
Sánchez impressed the Tigers with his performance after coming to Detroit with second baseman Omar Infante in a July deadline trade with the Marlins. He went 4-6 with a 3.74 ERA in 12 regular-season starts for manager Jim Leyland, and recorded a 1.77 ERA while going 1-2 in three postseason outings.
He will join Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer and Doug Fister at the top of Detroit’s 2013 rotation.
Gregor Blanco‘s small bat skills have helped lead his San Francisco Giants to a 2-0 lead against the Detroit Tigers in the World Series…
Unlike his teammate Pablo Sandoval’s hard-hitting performance in Game 1, the 28-year-old Venezuelan baseball star’s bunt stayed in bounds to eke out the go-ahead run in a 2-0 win Thursday night against the Tigers.
Blanco’s single trickled to a stop just inches fair on the infield dirt, setting up Brandon Crawford‘s run-scoring double-play grounder in the seventh. Hunter Pence added a sacrifice fly in the eighth.
“I was joking with (coach) Roberto Kelly when I got to first base, ‘We practiced that today,'” said Blanco about his single that rolled 45 feet, if that. “That was a perfect bunt. I wasn’t really trying to do that. I think it was just meant to be and I’m thankful that I did it.”
Madison Bumgarner shut down the Tigers for seven innings, then Santiago Casilla pitched a perfect eighth and Sergio Romo worked the ninth for a save in the combined two-hitter, leaving Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera and his team in a huge hole heading back to Comerica Park.
Game 3 will be played Saturday night in Detroit, and for once, the Giants aren’t playing from behind. They overcame a 2-0 deficit to beat Cincinnati Reds in the best-of-five National League Division Series and escaped a 3-1 hole against the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Championship Series.
Anibal Sanchez will start for the Tigers against Ryan Vogelsong in Detroit.
Of the 52 teams to take a 2-0 lead in the World Series, 41 have gone on to win the title. That includes 14 of the last 15 teams with that advantage.
“I’m not sure, and I haven’t done any studies on it,” said Giants reliever Jeremy Affeldt, “but statisically it’s always better to be 2-0 than 1-1 or 0-2. I’m just guessing.”