Manny Sanguillen

Lore & Background

Sanguillén was born in Colón, Panama. He grew up in a tough barrio and didn't touch a baseball until he was nineteen, when he heard a pastor preaching sermons on a street corner, joined the Evangelical Baptist Church, and became a member of the church team. Two years later he was signed to play professional baseball. After playing for three years in the minor leagues, he joined the Pirates in 1967, playing in 30 games.

He played another season in the minor leagues in 1968, before returning to the Major Leagues in 1969. He replaced Jerry May as the Pirates starting catcher and posted a .303 batting average. He solidified his reputation as one of the top hitting catchers in baseball by hitting for a .325 batting average in 1970, finishing third in the National League batting championship behind Rico Carty and Joe Torre. Sanguillen was a valuable member of the world champion 1971 Pirates.

He had his best year in terms of offensive production by hitting for a .319 batting average, while hitting 7 home runs and 81 runs batted in. He also had his best year defensively, finishing third among National League catchers in games caught (135), second in base runners caught stealing (37), caught stealing percentage (51.4%), fielding percentage (.994) and first in assists (72). The Pirates won the National League Eastern Division pennant by 7 games over the St. Louis Cardinals, then defeated the San Francisco Giants in the 1971 National League Championship Series, before winning the World Series against the Baltimore Orioles.

In the seven-game series, Sanguillen had a .379 batting average with 11 hits, second only to the 12 hits by Roberto Clemente. After the tragic death of Roberto Clemente before the 1973 season, the Pirates slated Sanguillen to take Clemente's place in right field. By mid-June, it was apparent that Sanguillen couldn't adapt to playing the outfield and he was moved back to the catcher's position. Sanguillen had another strong year in 1975, when he posted a .328 batting average, third in the National League batting championship behind Bill Madlock and Ted Simmons.

In 1977, Sanguillen was traded by the Pirates to the Oakland Athletics for the services of then-A's manager Chuck Tanner and $100,000 as a settlement of Tanner's contract with the A's. After one season with the A's, Sanguillen was traded back to the Pirates for Miguel Diloné and Elías Sosa.

Reader's Guide

A three-time All-Star, Sanguillén's lifetime batting average of .296 is the fourth-highest by a catcher since World War II, and tenth-highest for catchers in Major League Baseball history. Although he was often overshadowed by his contemporary Johnny Bench, Sanguillén was considered one of the best catchers in Major League baseball in the early 1970s. While he didn't possess Bench's power hitting ability, Sanguillen hit for a higher batting average.

He was an integral member of the Pirates teams that won three consecutive National League Eastern Division pennants between 1970 and 1972, and a World Series victory in 1971. Sanguillen was also a fast baserunner for a catcher and was a good defensive player with a strong throwing arm. On the field, Sanguillen was notorious for being a 'bad-ball' hitter. Most pitchers will try to strike out an aggressive, free-swinging hitter by forcing him to swing at pitches outside the strike zone when he had two strikes on him.

Sanguillen often irritated opposing pitchers and managers by hitting bad pitches for base hits. He rarely walked, and was the only player since 1900 with at least six straight seasons with 475 plate appearances and fewer than 22 walks. This was also why, in spite of his high batting average, his on-base percentage was lower than the league average over his career.

Did You Know?

• Sanguillen missed the plane that killed Roberto Clemente because he had misplaced his car key, and later helped recover bodies from the crash despite sharks in the water.
• He currently operates 'Manny's BBQ', a barbecue-style concession stand at PNC Park, where he greets fans and signs autographs.
• Sanguillen was inducted into the Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame in 2019 and the Pittsburgh Pirates Hall of Fame in 2024.