Not long after signing veteran catcher Gary Sánchez to a minor-league contract, the New York Mets will now call up the former Yankee, Anthony Dicomo reports. Sánchez, 30, had opted his out of minor-league pact with the Giants and thus became a free agent, which led to his pairing with the Mets earlier this month. 

Sánchez had a reported Friday opt-out in his deal with the Mets, and that likely prompted the club to decide on a promotion. While Sánchez’s overall performance this season in 23 Triple-A games is disappointing (.672 OPS), he’s put up big numbers since joining the Mets. In seven games with Triple-A Syracuse, Sánchez owns a slash line of .318/.531/.546 with a home run, two doubles, and eight walks. 

Sánchez is quite a ways from his peak years with the Yankees. From 2016-19, he made a pair of All-Star Game appearances and compiled a 122 OPS+ and 105 home runs in 370 games. He’s since suffered steep and premature decline with an OPS+ of 89 the last three-plus seasons.

As for the Mets, they’re employing a tandem at catcher consisting of rookie Francisco Álvarez and veteran Tomás Nido. While Álvarez has significant long-term promise, they’ve struggled to get consistent production from the position in 2023. 

Adding to the concerns is that the Mets are without free-agent signing Omar Narváez, who strained his calf early in the season. He’s still weeks away from a potential return.