Gary Sánchez is an ABS Menace, and He Must Be Stopped

Gary Sánchez has been a welcome surprise for the Brewers this season. Coming in with a penciled-in role as the backup catcher, Sánchez was thrust into increased playing time by early injuries and has performed admirably, slashing .218/.364/.451 (good for a 122 OPS+) in 165 plate appearances. However, Sánchez has one characteristic that sticks out in a bad way: his ABS challenges.

While his bat has more than justified his increased role, Sánchez's decision-making when it comes to challenging ball and strike calls has been a surprising weakness. ABS is a new, developing part of the game, and it's crucial to look at Sánchez’s rates to think about a change for the rest of the season.

Behind the plate, Sánchez has challenged 33 times, good for 42nd among catchers. He’s won 19 of them, a 58% clip, gaining four strikeouts and flipping two walks in the Brewers’ favor. On the surface, these results are solid. However, his volume stands out. Sánchez owns the 7th-highest challenge rate in baseball, at 3.6%; he is one of the most aggressive catchers when it comes to initiating reviews. That may not be an issue with Sánchez; it appears to be more of a Brewers philosophy. William Contreras is ninth in MLB in challenge rate, and the Brewers as a team have challenged the most so far this year.

If Sánchez's aggressiveness behind the plate appears to be a product of team philosophy, the same can't be said for his approach in the batter's box. He leads the league in lost challenges with 14 in 24 attempts. His challenge rate is 7th-highest at 17.1%, despite an expected challenge rate of 4.8%, suggesting he is challenging pitches far more often than the quality of the calls warrants.  

That aggressiveness has had a noticeable impact on Milwaukee's overall challenge profile. The Brewers have issued just 60 hitter challenges all season, the fewest in baseball, and Sánchez alone accounts for 24 of them, 40% of the team's total. For a player who isn't in the lineup every day, that's a remarkable share of the club's challenges.

Of course, the stakes of a missed challenge aren't enormous. Unlike an error or a strikeout, an unsuccessful review doesn't directly cost a run. But because each team has a limited number of challenges, using one on a pitch with little chance of being overturned can prevent a teammate from overturning a truly egregious missed call later in the game. That's where challenge discipline becomes just as important as challenge accuracy.

The moral of the story isn't that Sánchez should stop challenging altogether. In fact, his work behind the plate shows he has a decent feel for challenging pitches as a catcher. Instead, the issue lies in the batter's box, where he's been far too willing to gamble on close calls. If Sánchez can become more selective at the plate, the Brewers can preserve more challenges for situations where they're likely to make a meaningful difference. Given their elite discipline as a team, available challenges late in ball games can be crucial to overturn bad calls that damage Milwaukee in clutch situations. It would be an adjustment for Sánchez, but one that could remove one of the few blemishes from an excellent season for Milwaukee’s veteran backup catcher.