The Milwaukee Brewers have signed catcher Gary Sánchez to a one-year contract that includes a mutual option for 2025.
Sánchez, 31, has 19 home runs last season while playing for the San Diego Padres and New York Mets. In 75 games, he had a.217 batting average,.288 on-base percentage,.492 slugging percentage, and 47 RBI.
He played three games for the Mets and 72 for the Padres.
Sanchez has a.225 career batting average,.309 on-base percentage, 173 home runs, and 448 RBIs in 741 regular-season games for the New York Yankees (2015-2021), Minnesota Twins (2022), Mets, and Padres.
The Brewers already have William Contreras back at catcher after batting.289 with a.367 on-base percentage, 17 home runs, and 78 RBIs last season to help Milwaukee capture the National League Central Championship. Contreras was named the Brewers’ most valuable player last season by the Milwaukee chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America.
Milwaukee lost its backup catcher from last season when Victor Caratini signed with the Houston Astros, but the team has since added Eric Haase to a major league contract and Austin Nola to a minor league contract. The Brewers may also keep both Contreras and Sánchez in the lineup by making one of them a designated hitter.
To clear space on the roster, the Brewers designated infielder Jahmai Jones for assignment.
On Wednesday, the Brewers announced the signing of injured right-hander Brandon Woodruff to a two-year agreement.
The backloaded $17.5 million contract includes a mutual option for the 2026 season.
Woodruff is anticipated to miss the majority, if not all, of the 2017 season as he recovers from shoulder surgery.
“I’ll take it day to day, week to week, month to month, see where I’m at, at the end of the year,” Woodruff went on to say. “If it makes sense, perhaps. If not, I’ll be ready for ’25.
Woodruff will earn $2.5 million this year and $5 million by 2025. The agreement includes a $20 million mutual option for 2026 with a $10 million buyout, with half paying on January 15, 2026 and the balance due on July 15, 2026. The deal also includes a full no-trade clause and a hotel suite for road trips.
