Aníbal Sánchez - Rejoins Nats on MiLB pact Sanchez agreed Sunday with the Nationals on a minor-league contract that includes an invitation to major-league spring training, Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post reports. Impact Sanchez sat out the 2021 season after not finding any offers to his liking following a series of throwing sessions in front of teams, but after staging another showcase Saturday, the 38-year-old has elected to resume his career. He'll be returning to a familiar locale in Washington, where he spent his previous two seasons. Though Sanchez was an integral member of the rotation for the Nationals' 2019 World Series-winning squad, he took a major step back in the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign, submitting a 6.62 ERA and 1.66 WHIP. The poor performance in his MLB season in addition to the year away from baseball were likely major factors in Sanchez having to settle for a minor-league deal, but he should be in good position to break camp as a member of Washington's Opening Day rotation. Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo announced earlier Sunday that Joe Ross (elbow) is expected to be sidelined for the next 6-to-8 weeks after recently undergoing surgery to remove a bone spur, while Stephen Strasburg might not immediately be ready to go for the start of the season while he builds up following a long layoff due to thoracic outlet syndrome surgery.
MARCH 13, 2022 • ROTOWIRE
