Gary Sanchez has revenge moment against New York Yankees

One had to imagine that Gary Sanchez wanted to come through against the New York Yankees in his return to Yankee Stadium. He did so in a major way on Monday.

Sanchez took Jameson Taillon’s 1-0 offering in the top of the fifth to deep left, absolutely crushing the pitch for a two run homer. The ball traveled an estimated 473 feet, a blast that, as pointed out by MLB’s Sarah Langs, is the third longest of his career and the fourth longest in the history of the new Yankee Stadium.

Gary Sanchez has cathartic moment against New York Yankees

One could understand Sanchez taking the time to admire his home run. Not only was it a prodigious shot, but it was also one that had to feel great on a personal level coming against his former team.

Sanchez had spent the majority of the past few seasons being criticized for virtually everything possible. He would lose playing time to Kyle Higashioka seemingly based on manager Aaron Boone’s whims. There would always be some excuse, no matter how flimsy, as to why that would be the case.

Part of the problem was simply that Sanchez could not live up to the ghosts of Yankees Past. No matter what he did, he was not a Bill Dickey, Yogi Berra, or Thurman Munson. He certainly was not a Jorge Posada, the man he replaced. While he was a solid enough player and a two time All Star, he never lived up to expectations.

And so, as the boos rained down, Sanchez had his redemption. He circled the bases with a bit more joy than one would have expected, soaking up every second. He certainly deserved that moment given how he was generally treated by the team and fanbase.

Gary Sanchez hit an absolute monster of a home run against the New York Yankees. That blast was a cathartic moment considering what he went through.