Having been out with injury since April 20, Los Angeles Angels rookie catcher Logan O’Hoppe has been working his way toward a return following surgery to repair a torn labrum.
O’Hoppe’s has been taking swings in the cage, while throwing from home plate to second. Seeing as his injured shoulder was his non-throwing arm, these steps forward are more to prepare him for regular baseball activities.
Prior to the season, he was praised for working with the pitching staff in anticipation that he would earn the starting job. Now that the Angels are in the thick of the year, O’Hoppe explained his continued maturation as a rookie, per Jeff Fletcher of the O.C. Register:
“I’ve learned a lot,” O’Hoppe said on Monday. “We’d be here all night if we talked about everything I’ve learned… I knew it was going to help. I didn’t think it would help this much.”
The Angels made a really solid investment in him last trade deadline after flipping Brandon Marsh for O’Hoppe, with his preparation even while injured a very impressive piece:
“There’s a lot that goes into that position prior to 6:38 or whatever time we start,” General Manager Perry Minasian said. “There’s a lot of work done between noon and 5 that he can still do. That’s reviewing certain things and watching the game and game plans. What would you do in this situation? Why did we call what? What was the turnout? So there’s a lot of things we felt like he could gain and being here and being part of the club and I think he’s making the most of it.”
Having a few veteran catchers, including Chad Wallach, on the roster who’ve helped bridge the gap for the Angels. They, too, have noticed how much O’Hoppe has done with the little things that can take a good player to great:
“Just watching the game, that’s the biggest thing,” Wallach said. “He’s taking notes. He’s paying attention, which a lot of guys wouldn’t. A lot of guys would take this time and kind of just check out for a while. It just shows how much he loves the game. He wants to learn. He wants to be here. … He wants to know the game plan and stuff like that, which is cool. It’s big for him being a young guy and just learning as he goes even through the injury.”
With the latest injury news being that he’s slowly checking off boxes, the Angels could expect him to return at some point this season, possibly by late August.
How can Logan O’Hoppe help the Angels upon return
When the Angels clear O’Hoppe to return to game action, his overall health will be the biggest factor. How his shoulder responds to the reps and game speed can make or break what to expect of him.
Early in the season, the rookie began to show some very advanced skills at the plate, subtly tapping into his power from the right side. His 139 wRC+ in 59 plate appearances was a huge boost to the overall perception that Perry Minasian made a solid move in trading for him.
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