by Richard Rowell, Write W.A.V.E. Media Staff
Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons user UCInternational Jerry Sands has always shown some real offensive potential. Unfortunately for him, he's pretty much been a Quad-A player for much of his career. He had a 61 game stint with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2011, in which he was basically replacement level. He followed that up with a very strong season for Albuquerque in the offense-happy Pacific Coast League.
After being part of the mega deal with the Boston Red Sox that netted the Dodgers, Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crowford and Josh Beckett, he didn't see any action. He was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates that off-season along with Mark Melancon and others for Brock Holt and Joel Hanrahan. Sands had a terrible season in the Pirates system and was selected off waivers by the Tampa Bay Rays in the offseason.
Sands enjoyed a rebound season with the Durham Bulls of the Tampa Bay system, and got a 12 game cup-of-coffee in the Majors without any success. The Rays let him go at the end of the year, where he signed with the Cleveland Indians.
He's only got into 10 games so far with the Major League club, but he's been excellent in limited action (.375/444/.583 for an absurd 1.028 OPS) But the real story is what he's done for AAA Columbus. Sands owns a .278./402/.545 batting line good for a .947 OPS in 62 games. What's especially different about this batting line is the huge leaps and bounds he's gained in plate discipline. He's walked 42 times against only 38 strikeouts.
The question is if these changes in plate discipline are sustainble. He has a 16.2% walk rate and a 14.7 % strikeout compared to his career 9..7% and 24.0% career marks. His ISO (Isolated Power) is also a strong .268 mark. He's flashed this sort of power before in the minors, but Sands is much more of a complete hitter now. Sands is nothing special defensively in the corner outfield or at first base, but he's no butcher, either. He looks to be a pretty useful player going forward.
The Indians haven't really had room for Sands on the roster unfortunately. He isn't even arbitration eligible until 2017, so the Indians have control of him for some time if they so choose. He's no longer a prospect at 27 years old, but his days as a useful major leaguer may finally be about to begin.
After being part of the mega deal with the Boston Red Sox that netted the Dodgers, Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crowford and Josh Beckett, he didn't see any action. He was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates that off-season along with Mark Melancon and others for Brock Holt and Joel Hanrahan. Sands had a terrible season in the Pirates system and was selected off waivers by the Tampa Bay Rays in the offseason.
Sands enjoyed a rebound season with the Durham Bulls of the Tampa Bay system, and got a 12 game cup-of-coffee in the Majors without any success. The Rays let him go at the end of the year, where he signed with the Cleveland Indians.
He's only got into 10 games so far with the Major League club, but he's been excellent in limited action (.375/444/.583 for an absurd 1.028 OPS) But the real story is what he's done for AAA Columbus. Sands owns a .278./402/.545 batting line good for a .947 OPS in 62 games. What's especially different about this batting line is the huge leaps and bounds he's gained in plate discipline. He's walked 42 times against only 38 strikeouts.
The question is if these changes in plate discipline are sustainble. He has a 16.2% walk rate and a 14.7 % strikeout compared to his career 9..7% and 24.0% career marks. His ISO (Isolated Power) is also a strong .268 mark. He's flashed this sort of power before in the minors, but Sands is much more of a complete hitter now. Sands is nothing special defensively in the corner outfield or at first base, but he's no butcher, either. He looks to be a pretty useful player going forward.
The Indians haven't really had room for Sands on the roster unfortunately. He isn't even arbitration eligible until 2017, so the Indians have control of him for some time if they so choose. He's no longer a prospect at 27 years old, but his days as a useful major leaguer may finally be about to begin.
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