The Players Union may go to bat for Anibal.
Sanchez, who pitched a no-hitter against the Diamondbacks last September and finished the season with a 10-3 record, got off to a slow start this season and was sent down to Triple A Albuquerque (N.M.).
But he never threw a pitch for the Isotopes, complaining of shoulder soreness soon after the demotion.
Members of the Marlins coaching staff have said Sanchez, who was positioned third in line in the rotation out of spring training and made six starts, never complained of any physical problems to them.
But the 23-year-old pitcher was said to be unhappy with the demotion in early May, and, though a grievance has not been filed, a spokesman for the Major League Baseball Players Association said the union is ''investigating'' the issue for the pitcher.
(emphasis is mine)
I have no problem with the Players Union getting involved, they are suppose to lookout for their members, after all. It's why the guys pay dues.
I have no doubt Anibal didn't say anything to the coaches and made every attempt to mask any problem with his shoulder, but that isn't a surprise or even unexpected. Let's face it -- the kids lie about how they feel physically. They want to play and I wouldn't expect anything less from them. (Aside: the club promotes this type of behavior from them as witnessed by the Henry Owens situation. Henry's shoulder flared which he admitted to early and went on the DL. When he left the team he was the closer, now he isn't even the setup man. And they wonder why they lie.)
The other thing about the injury is it was obvious from his pitching mechanics and velocity.
If the Players Union can get him bumped back up to the major league minimum, good for them and I hope the organization wouldn't contest it.