Angels' Logan O'Hoppe: Looks poised for roster spot
O'Hoppe now appears to be on track to open the season as a member of the Angels' 26-man active roster after manager Phil Nevin acknowledged Sunday that Max Stassi (hip) will likely begin the campaign on the injured list, FieldLevelMedia.com reports.
Given that the Angels want the 23-year-old to play regularly along with the fact that his primary competition for the No. 2 catcher role, Matt Thaiss, was out of minor-league options, O'Hoppe looked in line to open the season at Triple-A Salt Lake as recently as two weeks ago. However, with Stassi recently missing time in camp due to a personal matter before hurting his hip in a minor-league game Sunday, O'Hoppe looks like he could get the chance to see regular reps with the big club. O'Hoppe demonstrated impressive power-hitting and on-base skills at the Double-A level and in his brief taste of the majors in 2022, so he may be worth rostering in two-catcher leagues while he has a fairly clear path to playing time in the big leagues. Stassi took a big step back offensively in 2022 and likely didn't enter the season with much job security, so O'Hoppe could get the chance to stake a permanent claim to the No. 1 catching gig if he thrives early on in the campaign.
