San Diego Padres catcher Gary Sanchez is having some sort of career resurgence in the 2023 MLB season. Not since his days with the New York Yankees has he performed as well as he's been this year at the plate for the Padres. In fact, within just his first 57 games in a San Diego uniform, Sanchez has managed to duplicate a catcher feat that's only been done by two others (three times including himself) in the last 103 years, per OptaSTATS.

Primary catchers to have 16+ HR & 40+ RBI within their 1st 60 games with a team since RBI became official in 1920:

1995-96 Scott Servais – Cubs
2015-17 Gary Sanchez – Yankees
2019-20 Will Smith – Dodgers
2023 Gary Sanchez –@Padres (in 57 games)

Gary Sanchez reached both the 16-homer and 40-RBI plateaus in the same game Tuesday when he smashed a grand slam in the first inning against the Baltimore Orioles. That homer stretched the Padres' lead to five runs and established momentum for San Diego which ended up winning the contest, 10-3.

On the season, Sanchez has 16 home runs and 41 RBIs. He has already matched his total in homers with the Minnesota Twins in 2022 when he appeared in 128 games. With plenty of games left on the Padres' schedule, Sanchez can still eclipse the 61 RBIs he had in a Minnesota uniform.

Sanchez is seeing the ball better this season. His home run rate is up from 3.4 percent in 2022 to 7.6 percent in 2023. His strikeout rate of 28.9 percent in 2022 is now down to 24.1 percent, entering Wednesday.

Regardless of how the 2023 campaign ends for San Diego, it appears that Sanchez is doing his stock in upcoming free agency a big favor with his performance for the Padres.