Sandoval signed a contract with the Mexican League's Acereros De Monclava on Monday.
Sandoval managed to break camp with the Braves in 2021 and slashed .178/.302/.342 with four homers and 11 RBI in 60 games. He was traded to the Indians at the deadline in a deal that sent Eddie Rosario to Atlanta, and he was cut loose immediately after. It's unclear at this point whether Sandoval will get another shot in the MLB, but at the very least, he played well enough in the Venezuelan Winter League to earn a contract for the upcoming Mexican League season. Sandoval went 8-for-24 with a home run, two RBI and two walks in six games.
Sandoval was released by Cleveland shortly after he was acquired from Atlanta on Friday, Zack Meisel of The Athletic reports.
The decision to immediately cut Sandoval after acquiring him confirms that Cleveland's main motivation in trading away outfielder Eddie Rosario was to get off the hook for the money remaining on his $8 million deal. Prior to the trade, Sandoval had served mainly as a pinch hitter off the bench for Atlanta, slashing .178/.302/.342 in 86 plate appearances. The soon-to-be 35-year-old Sandoval offers little defensive value and has contributed a 67 wRC+ since the start of the 2020 season, so he could have trouble earning another opportunity in the big leagues.
Sandoval was sent from Atlanta to Cleveland in exchange for Eddie Rosario and cash considerations Friday.
Sandoval has been almost exclusively a pinch hitter in Atlanta, playing a total of five innings in the field. He's done very little of note in 86 plate appearances, hitting .178/.302/.342 with four homers. Now that he's in the American League, it's at least possible he spends some time as a designated hitter, but he's unlikely to play a significant role and unlikely to be of much interest to fantasy managers even if he earns unexpected at-bats.
Braves' Pablo Sandoval: Returns from restricted list
Rotowire
Sandoval (personal) was reinstated from the restricted list Thursday.
Sandoval was away from the team for the last two days for personal reasons. He'll return to his bench role, with reliever Jacob Webb getting optioned in a corresponding move.
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Braves' Pablo Sandoval: Placed on restricted list
Rotowire
Sandoval was placed on the restricted list for a personal reason Tuesday.
Sandoval hasn't had a spot in the lineup recently, and he's gone 0-for-11 with an RBI, a run and a 3:3 BB:K as a pinch hitter since June 13. Manager Brian Snitker said Tuesday that the 34-year-old will likely rejoin the team within the next three days, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports. Right-hander Jacob Webb was recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett in a corresponding move.
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Braves' Pablo Sandoval: Struggles continue
Rotowire
Sandoval flew out as a pinch hitter in Tuesday's loss to the Mets.
The 34-year-old is being used exclusively as a bench bat these days, but he's not seeing much success in the role, going 0-for-9 with a walk in his last 10 pinch-hitting assignments dating back to June 13. On the season, Sandoval has a .210/.310/.403 slash line with four homers and 10 RBI in 71 plate appearances.
Sandoval went 3-for-4 with a run scored in Tuesday's win over the Red Sox.
Sandoval thrived against his former team and recorded his second multi-hit appearance of the month, though it's also worth mentioning he's been relegated to a minimal role and has seen more than two at-bats in a game just thrice in May. The veteran has been making the most of his opportunity, though, hitting .286 with a .959 OPS despite recording just 49 plate appearances across 35 games during the month.
Sandoval went 1-for-1 with a pinch-hit two-run home run in Saturday's 8-7 win over Philadelphia.
Sandoval stepped to the plate with two out in the ninth and cracked a game-tying two-run home run. He's been successful this year in a pinch-hit role with a .390/.389/.677 slash line.
Braves' Pablo Sandoval: Keeps delivering as pinch hitter
Rotowire
Sandoval delivered a three-run home run in his only plate appearance Thursday against the Marlins.
Sandoval entered the game as a pinch hitter in the sixth inning and homered to give Atlanta the lead. It was his third long ball of the season, all of which have come as a pinch hitter. Despite his heroics, Sandoval has only 10 plate appearances this season, which makes him far more valuable to Atlanta than to fantasy managers.
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Braves' Pablo Sandoval: Another clutch homer
Rotowire
Sandoval hit a two-run, pinch-hit home run in a 2-0 win over the Nationals during the second game of Wednesday's doubleheader.
He took Tanner Rainey deep in the top of the seventh inning to account for the only offense in the game. Amazingly, Sandoval already has two pinch-hit homers in 2021 after going yard only once in 34 games last year, but barring a rash of injuries, the 34-year-old seems very unlikely to get consistent playing time for Atlanta.
