I Hope Jerry Sands Didn’t Buy a House in Boston Yet

Jerry Sands, the former Dodger prospect, has been traded by the Red Sox to Pittsburgh before he could ever meet the Green Monster at Fenway Park. Sands is part of a six-player deal between Boston and Pittsburgh which sends right-handed relief pitcher Joel Hanrahan to the Sox.

Jerry Sands was a rare power hitting prospect in the Dodgers farm system, but he never panned out. Photo: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

After never really breaking through as a Dodger, Sands was traded as a player to be named later in the mega deal this past summer between the Dodgers and Boston which brought Adrian Gonzalez, Nick Punto, Carl Crawford, and Josh Beckett to Los Angeles. Sands, a former substitute teacher, was once the 2010 minor league player of the year for the Dodgers. The 25-year old was supposed to be a sought after power hitting prospect for the Dodgers, but unfortunately he just never panned out. In his 70 big league games with the Dodgers during the 2011 and 2012 seasons, Sands collectively had a .244/.325/.376 line with 4 homeruns and 27 RBIs in 251 plate appearances. His power never translated to the Major League level even though he surmised 119 homeruns over his 5 seasons in the minors. In 2012 with the AAA-Albuquerque Isotopes, Sands batted .296 with 26 homeruns and 107 RBIs. Many fans were clamoring for the Dodgers to give Sands another shot while we were enduring the placidness of James Loney. During his short call-ups last season, Sands only mustered a .174 batting average with 4 hits in 23 at-bats.  We sort of knew that this was probably the end of the line for The Sandman as a Dodger.

Sands had a brief hot streak in 2011 when he hit over .300 in September, but alas the

Jerry’s success as an Isotope never translated to the big league level for the Dodgers. Photo: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

success Sands had was fleeting. Dodger Stadium only had but a few weeks to blare Metallica’s Enter Sandman before the gig was over. Jerry Sands had an awful plate approach, and he couldn’t pull the ball to save his life. He also left much to be desired defensively as well. But Sands is still young, and he can play both outfield and first base. Pittsburgh obviously sees something in him. Much like John Ely who was traded to Houston earlier this week, Sands was at the end of his line with the Dodger organization. We wish him luck in Pittsburgh.

Joel Hanrahan was rumored to be a target for the Dodgers previously, and some whisperings had lined up Chris Capuano in a potential deal. The Pirates just signed Francisco Liriano to a two-year contract, so they had no need for Cappy. It is still unclear what the Dodgers plan to do with Aaron Harang and Chris Capuano whom are essentially two extra unneeded starting pitchers on the roster. The Dodgers are also lacking a viable back-up first baseman for Adrian Gonzalez unless you count Scott Van Slyke who just cleared waivers and was outrighted to Albuquerque.