Logan O’Hoppe has been one of the bright spots in an otherwise disappointing Los Angeles Angels season, but the catcher recently fell into his own lull.
Entering Friday’s matchup against the Atlanta Braves, O’Hoppe had gone hitless seven games in a row while also dealing with right knee soreness. His drought reached an 0-for-29 stretch before O’Hoppe turned his fortune around.
In his second at-bat against the Braves, O’Hoppe ended the skid with a game-tying, two-run home run in the fourth inning.
O’Hoppe admitted after the game that big swing took a sizable amount of pressure off himself, per Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com:
“It was a good feeling,” O’Hoppe said. “Felt a lot of weight lifted off my shoulders. I’m grateful my family is patient. It’s been a tough week. I don’t want to go into too much depth but it’s been tough. Obviously, getting out of it still, but it’s a good sign. I feel like I finally got something to latch on and build on tonight.”
Angels manager Ron Washington agreed the home run helped alleviate some of the stress and pressure that had been mounting for O’Hoppe:
“I think he got the monkey off his back,” manager Ron Washington said. “He was trying hard, and that one right there he hung a breaking ball, and he didn’t try to kill it. He just put his bat head on it and it went. So that’s all he needed and I think he’s starting to feel good about himself. He needed that.”
The home run was O’Hoppe’s lone hit in the game, but it helped spark an Angels’ comeback. Mickey Moniak completed it with an RBI double in the sixth inning that gave them a decided lead.
O’Hoppe’s homer traveled 407 feet and had an exit velocity of 104.5 mph, per Statcast data. The home run was O’Hoppe’s 17th of the season, which is tied with Zach Neto for second on the team. Jo Adell leads the Angels with 18 home runs.
O’Hoppe’s latest blast also came on the nigh the wore a special catcher’s chest protector that is signed by patients from Miller’s Children Hospital in Long Beach as part of MLB Players Weekend. O’Hoppe visited with patients earlier in the week to have them draw on the front and sign the inside of the chest protector.
Logan O’Hoppe voted Angels’ Heart & Hustle Award winner
O’Hoppe was named the Angels’ winner of the 2024 Heart and Hustle Award, which is presented annually by the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association (MLBPAA) to one player on each team who “best embodies the values, spirits and traditions of baseball,” along with factoring in on-field performance.
O’Hoppe received the individual team honor of the Heart and Hustle Award in just his second full season with the Angels.
