C Tony Sanchez had his contract purchased by the Braves on Sunday. He was outrighted to the minors two weeks earlier after going 0-for-1 at Wrigley Field on Sept. 2 in his major league debut. Sanchez, 29, hit .272/.355/.374 with the Angels' Triple-A Salt Lake affiliate before he was traded to the Braves on Aug. 31 in exchange for 2B Brandon Phillips.

C Tony Sanchez was outrighted to the Triple-A Gwinnett Braves. Sanchez and cash considerations went from the Los Angeles Angels to the Braves Aug. 31 in exchange for 2B Brandon Phillips. He struck out in his only at-bat for the Braves.

C Tony Sanchez was cash considerations went from the Angels to the Braves on Thursday in exchange for 2B Brandon Phillips.Sanchez, 29, joined the Angels as a minor league free agent on Nov. 2 and has spent the season with Triple-A Salt Lake. In 70 games for the Bees, he hit .272 with four home runs and 40 RBIs.

One day after achieving a career milestone with his 2,000th hit, infielder Brandon Phillips was traded by the Atlanta Braves to the Los Angeles Angels on Thursday.Phillips was scratched from the Braves' lineup against the Chicago Cubs on Thursday night before the deal went through. He will be eligible for the Angels' postseason roster if Los Angeles makes it.The Angels shipped Triple-A catcher Tony Sanchez to the Braves as part of the transaction and received cash considerations.The Phillips deal was the second trade of the day for the Angels (69-65), who earlier acquired four-time All-Star outfielder Justin Upton from the Detroit Tigers.To make room on the 40-man roster, the Angels transferred right-hander Andrew Bailey to the 60-day disabled list. Bailey is out for the season due to a right shoulder strain.The 36-year-old Phillips, a four-time Gold Glove winner and three-time All-Star, is expected to take over at second base for the Angels. The veteran is hitting .291 with 11 home runs,... [More]

C Tony Sanchez, designated for assignment by the Pirates on Jan. 6, was released Wednesday. Sanchez, 27, went 3-for-8 in three games for Pittsburgh this year. In 94 games for Triple-A Indianapolis, he batted .236/.342/.342 with three homers and 47 RBIs.

C Tony Sanchez was designated for assignment by the Pirates to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for newly signed RHP Neftali Feliz. Sanchez, 27, went 3-for-8 in three games for Pittsburgh this year. In 94 games for Triple-A Indianapolis, he batted .236/.342/.342 with three homers and 47 RBIs.

Sanchez was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis on Friday, the Pittsburgh Post Gazette's Bill Brink reports.

With Chris Stewart coming off the DL and taking over the backup catcher duties, Sanchez will serve as the organization's third catcher and thus he will play at Triple-A. Should an injury befall Stewart or Francisco Cervelli, Sanchez's services will once again be required at the big league level.

Sanchez made his second start of the year Sunday, going 3-for-4 with two runs scored.

The results were in direct contrast to his Thursday performance, when he went 0-for-3 with three strikeouts. Sanchez has always shown glimmers of hope offensively -- his ability to play competent defense will help determine how often he sees his name in the lineup. The catcher oddly bumped into the home plate umpire while throwing to first base to complete a strikeout, but the incident caused no error, just a little embarrassment.

Sanchez, who will start the year as Francisco Cervelli's backup, struck out in his lone at-bat Friday.

He's having a great spring at the plate, batting .366 in 41 at-bats, but the Bucs may be reluctant to use him behind the plate if he delivers sub-par defense. Sanchez airmailed a fairly routine throw from the infield grass to first base on a bunt attempt Friday. He's had trouble throwing to bases in the past, so his throwing performance merits close scrutiny. Sanchez didn't do himself any favors Friday.

Sanchez will likely begin the season with the Pirates, Travis Sawchik of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports.

With Chris Stewart sidelined for at least two weeks, with the possibility of hitting the DL, manager Clint Hurdle said Friday that Sanchez is likely to open the season in the big leagues. The first-round pick would likely begin the year as the backup to Francisco Cervelli if Stewart does, indeed, miss time to begin the season.

Sanchez went 1-for-3 with a two-run homer Wednesday against the Tigers.

Sanchez worked on his defensive skills over the winter and could factor into the Pirates' future with continued strong play. He has 10 hits in 19 spring at-bats but the organization is looking for improved defense from the first-round draft pick. He could start the season as a backup to Francisco Cervelli if Chris Stewart goes on the disabled list, something that still seems like a longshot.

Sanchez was used as a catcher and went 2-for-3 against the Red Sox on Saturday, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

He also threw out would-be base stealer Allen Craig at second base. Pittsburgh said over the winter Sanchez would see time at first base, but he's been used behind the plate when he's played. "He's in a very good place," manager Clint Hurdle said. "He's swinging the bat aggressively, squared up contact with balls all over the diamond. ... He's having a really fine swing." The Bucs still like his bat to an extent, but finding him a place on the field where he won't hurt the team defensively remains an on-going project.

Sanchez will get some work in at first base during spring training, Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

The Pirates had toyed with the idea of giving Sanchez some reps at first base at the end of the season, but GM Neal Huntington seemed to abandon the idea, assigning him to play primarily behind the plate in winter ball. It seems Huntington has reversed course again, as he said Saturday that Sanchez will gets some reps at first base, with a chance to earn a job as a reserve/right-handed bench bat in the spring.

Sanchez will catch in winter ball, Tom Singer of MLB.com reports.

There was some talk that the Pirates would try Sanchez at first base over the winter, but GM Neal Huntington said Tuesday that he will play primarily behind the plate. With Russell Martin likely to command a bigger payday than the Pirates can afford, Sanchez, who has hit .252/.295/.378 in 48 career games at the major league level, could open 2015 as the top backup behind Chris Stewart.

Sanchez was recalled from Triple-A Indianapolis on Monday.

Sanchez will be up to occupy a spot on the Pirates' expanded September roster, after batting .278/.316/.375 in three previous stints with the big club this season. He'll merely provide depth behind Russell Martin and Chris Stewart.

Sanchez went 0-for-3 with a walk and three strikeouts in his debut as a first baseman Friday night for Triple-A Indianapolis.

Sanchez has thrown out only seven of 62 baserunners from behind the plate and is no longer seen as the Pirates' preferred option at catcher when and if Russell Martin departs for free agency after the 2014 season. Sanchez has also struggled offensively in the minors -- he's hitting .226/.336/.421 with 10 homers and 40 RBI in 235 at-bats, but has swung the batter better with Pittsburgh (.278/.316./.375) in 72 at-bats. It's becoming a longshot the 2009 first-round pick catches regularly in the majors, but his bat could still play in the majors at another position.

Pirates optioned C Tony Sanchez to Triple-A Indianapolis.

Russell Martin is back from the disabled list, so the club has no need for a third catcher. Sanchez is hitting .278 with two home runs over 21 games this year.

Tony Sanchez is expected to be optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis when Jason Grilli (oblique) is activated from the disabled list.

Russell Martin is back from a hamstring strain and Chris Stewart is his primary backup, so this isn't a big surprise. Sanchez is hitting .278 (20-for-72) with two home runs, 12 RBI, and a 26/3 K/BB ratio in 21 games this year.

Tony Sanchez hit his first homer of the season Thursday against the Brewers.

Sanchez has gotten the bulk of the playing time behind the plate over Chris Stewart with Russell Martin out. Still, he'll likely be sent down so that he can continue to play regularly once Martin returns.

Pirates recalled C Tony Sanchez to Triple-A Indianapolis.

Sanchez is active and getting the start behind the plate on Saturday, hitting eighth against the Cardinals. No word yet on the corresponding move, but it could very well be Russell Martin heading to the disabled list.