The Pittsburgh Pirates have claimed right-handed pitcher Angel Sanchez from the Chicago White Sox. Originally, Bob Nightengale from USA Today reported that the Pirates claimed a shortstop by that name from the White Sox(who is a real player that played for them in 2013), but it turns out that the Pirates have picked up the pitcher by the same name.
The pitcher is a 24-year-old righty, who was in AA at the time. He has pitched for four different teams in the minors this year and struggled at every stop, posting a 6.57 ERA over 19 starts, with a .312 BAA. He’s shown decent control with 28 walks in 89 innings and the 1.35 GO/AO ratio is likely something that caught the eye of the Pirates. He’s had a decent ground ball rate for four years as a pro and prior to this season, he was more of a strikeout pitcher.
Sanchez started with the Dodgers and was rated their 8th best prospect prior to the 2013 season. He was part of the Ricky Nolasco deal with the Marlins, along with right-handed pitcher Josh Wall, who was removed from the Pirates 40-man roster to make room for Sanchez. Wall was pitching in Indianapolis, where he placed after being picked up off waivers from the Angels in May. He has a 3.22 ERA over 19 relief appearances, with 22 strikeouts in 22.1 innings with Indianapolis.