Oops! All Astros: Anderson Sanchez & Miguel Ullola

Throughout the 2022-23 offseason, Crawfish Boxes will be looking back at every single one of the 316 players to appear in the Astros system in 2022.

Anderson Sanchez

Anderson Sanchez is a six-foot-one 170 lb. right-handed first baseman and outfielder from San Onofre, Columbia. Born on November 6, 2003, Sanchez signed with the Astros through free agency on January 19, 2021.

Six months later, Sanchez got his first professional assignment, and joined the DSL Astros in the rookie-level Dominican Summer League. He played in 25 games to close out the season, going six-for-40 with a double and three RBI. He drew three walks, struck out 19 times, and stole four bases in eight attempts.

In 2022, the Astros fielded two rookie affiliates in the DSL, and sent Sanchez off to play with the Orange club. He went 18-for-90 with 14 RBI and 25 walks. Although he only hit .200, he did show enough patience to post a .379 OBP.

On the defensive side of the ball, Sanchez played 225 innings in 2022, and made zero errors. He played 86 innings at first base, 71 innings in left, 52 innings in right, and 16 in center.

Sanchez still needs work at the plate, but his defensive acumen should be enough for the Astros to give him at the very minimum a lateral promotion to the Rookie-Level Florida Coast League.

Miguel Ullola

Miguel Ullola is a six-foot-one, 184 lb. right-handed pitcher from Puerto Plata, DR. Born on June 19, 2002, he signed a deal with Houston on January 15, 2021 and was assigned to the DSL Astros. Through his first professional season, he split the year between DSL and the FCL rookie clubs, starting in half of his 10 pitching appearances. He went 1-1 with a 4.07 ERA and 38 whiffs in 24 ¹⁄₃ innings. He gave up 12 runs on 12 hits and 21 walks.

This year, Ullola spent the entire campaign with the Low-A Fayetteville Woodpeckers, where he showed off his 99 MPH fastball. Again, he started in half of his appearances, totaling 11 starts and 11 trips out of the bullpen. He only allowed 39 hits in 72 innings while striking out 120 batters. Wildness was his only Achilles heel, with 13 wild pitches, seven HBP, and 55 walks.

On June 3, Ullola struck out six over four near-perfect innings, allowing a baserunner only an an error in a 3-0 win against the Fredericksburg Nationals. On August 23, he struck out 10 over five hitless innings of relief, giving up one run on two walks.

The month of July would see Ullola named the minor league pitcher of the month, according to si.com:

Ullola posted a 0.54 ERA and a 2-0 record across four games with two starts for Single-A Fayetteville. With 25 strikeouts, the 20-year-old also amounted a 0.84 WHIP and a .148 opponent batting average.

Ullola gave up an opposing slash line of .157/.323/.229, with excellent swing-and-miss stuff and more than a little touch of wildness. He was also very easy to steal on; 32-of-36 were successful in stolen base attempts. Ullola certainly showed enough to move up for the 2023 season, where I expect he’ll begin with the High-A Asheville Tourists.