Pablo Sandoval is back in baseball and in a familiar spot, too.
The 37-year-old Sandoval will return to Giants camp as a non-roster invitee, NBC Sports Bay Area first reported Saturday, marking a return to San Francisco for a player affectionately known as “Kung Fu Panda” during his time there.
Sandoval played in two different stints for the Giants during his 14-year major league career, helping them win World Series titles in 2010, 2012 and 2014 during his first go-round with the team. In 2012, he was named World Series MVP after hitting .500 with three home runs and four RBIs in a four-game sweep of the Detroit Tigers.
He rejoined the Giants in 2017 after he was released by the Boston Red Sox, just three seasons into a five-year, $95 million contract he signed after the 2014 season. San Francisco then released him in 2020.
The two-time All-Star last played in the majors in 2021, appearing in 69 games for the Atlanta Braves and hitting .178 with four home runs. He played in Mexico last year, and then in October, was drafted in Baseball United, the first pro baseball league in the Middle East and South Asia.