World Baseball Network has built a minor league contract signing ledger highlighting key international-born players whose signings may carry implications for the 2026 Major League Baseball season and organizational depth entering spring training.
According to the New York Yankees’ transactions page on December 17, the organization signed Venezuelan catchers Ali Sánchez and Miguel Palma to minor league contracts.
El Extrabase reported on December 22 that the Yankees signed Sánchez to a minor league contract.
El catcher venezolano, Alí Sánchez, firmó contrato de liga menor e invitación a Spring Training con los Yankees de Nueva York.
Sánchez suma cuatro temporadas de experiencia en Grandes Ligas con los Mets, Cardenales, Marlins, Azulejos y Medias Rojas. #RepBX | #ElExtrabase⚾️🇻🇪 pic.twitter.com/y8o8wUtYkn
— El Extrabase ⚾️ (@ElExtrabase) December 22, 2025
Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News reported on the Yankees’ front office reasoning behind acquiring both catchers.
The logs say the #Yankees signed another right-handed hitting catcher, Ali Sánchez, to a MiLB deal. He joins Payton Henry & Miguel Palma.
These are just depth/flier/NRI moves. NY would like an established RHH catcher, but Cashman said during the WM "it's a very thin marketplace,…
— Gary Phillips (@GaryHPhillips) December 22, 2025
The 28-year-old right-handed hitter from Carora, Venezuela, has appeared in four Major League seasons with the New York Mets in 2020, the St. Louis Cardinals in 2021, the Miami Marlins in 2024, and the Toronto Blue Jays and Boston Red Sox in 2025.
Sánchez has played in 36 games during the 2025–26 Liga Venezolana de Béisbol Profesional season with the Cardenales de Lara, logging 148 plate appearances while hitting .306/.354/.493. He has collected 41 hits, seven doubles, six home runs, 24 RBI, one stolen base, 11 walks, and struck out 16 times.
During the 2025 MLB season with Toronto and Boston, Sánchez appeared in 12 games and batted .217/.217/.304 across 23 plate appearances, collecting five hits, two doubles, and striking out six times.
Sánchez also spent time in 2025 with Triple-A Buffalo in the Blue Jays organization and Triple-A Syracuse in the Mets organization.
Across 57 games between Buffalo and Syracuse, Sánchez hit .274 over 211 plate appearances, recording 52 hits, eight doubles, six home runs, 32 RBI, 18 walks, 50 strikeouts, and posted a .411 OPS.
Last offseason, Sánchez signed a minor league contract with the Blue Jays on December 20, 2024, which included an invitation to spring training.
Sánchez appeared in 17 games during the 2025 Grapefruit League season with Toronto, batting .118/.211/.118 across 17 at-bats, recording two hits, one RBI, two walks, and striking out four times.
