Every Thursday, Minor Matters will unveil its Top 10 opposing players for the 2011 season. Yes, the Thunder are clearly the most interesting topic on this blog, but wouldn't be nice to hear about the next Matt Wieters, Carlos Santana or Stephen Strasburg to come through the Eastern League. Yeah, I thought so too.

No. 8 - Tony Sanchez

















Bio: Pittsburgh's first-rounder in 2009, Sanchez was seen by some as a safe pick, because of his college pedigree and low price tag. From Boston College, he's a commodity both behind the plate and with the bat. Were it not for a broken jaw at the end of the year, Sanchez likely would have seen Altoona in first full season. He's already on the Curve's roster on the team's website.

2010: As I mentioned, Sanchez had his jaw broken late in the year by a Brad Holt fastball. Before that, Sanchez looked good. In 59 games, he hit .314/.416/.870 with four home runs and 35 RBIs. He struck out just 41 times in 207 at-bats.

What People Are Saying:

"He's as advertised. The ball jumps off his bat. You can see the tools. And you can understand why he's as highly touted as he is. I'm excited about him. He won't take long."
-- Ryan Doumit

"He has a good swing and solid approach with moderate to above-average power, although he has a slightly soft front side that limited his contact rate as an amateur. ... He's probably never going to be a star, but he's very likely to be an every-day catcher in the majors who might throw an All-Star season out there once or twice in his career."

-- Keith Law, ESPN

"Sanchez is the rare catcher with the ability to impact games both behind the plate and at it. He's a potentially special defender with plus-plus receiving skills and a well above-average arm. He has a mature approach at the plate and scouts believe that many of his doubles will turn into home runs down the road as he learns to drive balls better."
-- Kevin Goldstein, Baseball Prospectus

When You Can See Him: Sanchez and the Curve come to Waterfront Park from May 31 - June 2 and July 1-3.