Miguel Sano, nearly a decade removed from the days of being a phenom with the Twins, has lost 58 pounds as he attempts to revive his career with the Los Angels Angels.
This is great news for Sanó, who spent last year out of baseball after his contract with the Twins expired after the 2022 season. He's now looking for a fresh start with the Angels, whom he signed a minor-league contract with last month.
“He looks real good,” Angels Ron Washington said, via the Orange County Register. “And he’s in a great fame of mind.”
Sanó was a super prospect coming up in the Twins system along with Byron Buxton in the 2010s and made his debut in 2015, hitting .269/.35/.530 with 18 homers and 52 RBI in 80 games. Although Sanó declined in 2016, he rebounded to make his first All-Star appearance in 2017 when he slashed .264/.352/.507 with 28 homers and 77 RBI.
The weight issue began that season as Sanó suffered a stress reaction in his shin and was shut down for the final month. Sanó was sent down to Fort Myers in June of 2018 to work on his conditioning and finished the year hitting .199/.281/.298 with 13 homers and 41 RBI in 71 games.
Sanó missed the first two months of the 2019 season after cutting his heel during a celebration in the Dominican Republic during the offseason and returned to hit .247/.346/.576 with 34 homers and 79 RBI in 105 games.
The Twins signed Sanó to a three-year, $30 million extension after that season but he hit just .218/.303/.470 with 43 homers and 100 RBI over the next two seasons. Sanó lost 25 pounds the following offseason and was poised to finish strong in the final year of his contract but hit just .083/.211/.133 in 20 games for the Twins and the team declined his contract option in 2024.
He's now considerably slimmer since the last time Twins fans saw him on the field.
While Sanó looks ready to return to the majors, it will be interesting to see if it lasts and if he can revive what was once a promising career.
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