Topic: Anibal Sanchez

Aníbal Alejandro Sánchez, Jr. (born February 27, 1984 in Maracay, Venezuela) is a Major League Baseball right-handed starting pitcher with the Florida Marlins. He is listed as 6 feet tall and 180 pounds. On September 6, 2006, in just his 13th career Major League start, Sánchez pitched a no-hitter against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Sánchez possesses a fastball clocked as high as the mid-90's, an above-average curve, a good changeup and a slider . He was signed by the Boston Red Sox as an international free agent in 2001. After playing in the Venezuelan Summer League for two seasons, Aníbal suffered an elbow injury that required surgery to move his elbow ligament, causing him to miss the entire 2003 season.

In the following year, he returned to the mound, this time making his debut on American soil with the short-season Single-A Lowell Spinners. In 15 starts, Aníbal posted a 3–4 record with a 1.77 ERA, and by the end of the year was widely considered one of Boston's top pitching prospects. After the 2004 season, Baseball America named Sánchez Boston's fifth-best prospect, behind shortstop Hanley Ramirez, outfielder Brandon Moss, and pitchers Jonathan Papelbon and Jon Lester. By 2006, Ramirez, Papelbon, and Lester had all played in the majors; Moss was selected as the Portland Sea Dogs' most valuable player in 2006.