One of the big reasons the Los Angeles Angels failed so badly was the second-half struggles of catcher Logan O’Hoppe. He shot out of the gate following spring training last season with a home run surge that was memorable, then fell apart both offensively and defensively to the point where he ended up feuding with interim manager Ray Montgomery.
But there’s new leadership in place in Anaheim, and with it comes the renewed hope that O’Hoppe can realize at least some of his All-Star potential. It’s not an unreasonable expectation given O’Hoppe’s talent and tools, but getting there will take more of the kind of work the catcher did during the offseason to address his issues.
“I got a lot of answers for what was going on,” O’Hoppe said in a piece written by Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com. “It was different than what I thought was going on. And I found out pretty quickly into the offseason, so I got to spend an entire winter training and working on those things. I’m still learning things as I go as far as what happened where I'm at now. It was a lot of stuff, like neurologically that was going on, and also mechanically, with my swing and stuff behind the plate, too.”
That’s a lot to unpack, and O’Hoppe thinks it had a lot to do with the way he was training. The catcher said it was important to change his routine, so he spent the winter in his native New York, Tampa and the Angels’ spring training facility in Arizona.
O’Hoppe describes himself as a perfectionist, and his training routine reflected that tendency. He would often hit in cages after games last season, which is often a bad idea for catchers given the toll the position takes when it comes to wear and tear.
Still, he was the first one on the practice field on Thursday in Arizona when the Angels reported this week, but O’Hoppe is determined not to repeat the mistakes he made last year.
“It was really just the structure of my training,” O’Hoppe said. “Making sure I wasn't cooking myself too early in the day. So not having too heavy a workload early and then sitting around and doing nothing, then going back in for another heavy workload. That took a lot out of me. So now I've changed a couple things.”
Another change that could make a difference is the presence of new manager Kurt Suzuki, who spent 15 years in the big leagues as a catcher. O’Hoppe describes his new manager as “an ear to lean on,” but Suzuki described his role in slightly different terms.
“Just having that perspective of how hard it is to be a catcher,” Suzuki said. “Obviously, everybody loves hitting. But I know how important defense is and how important handling the staff is. It's not always about your stats offensively. It's about how you communicate with pitchers, how you make them feel on the mound when they're not feeling the greatest.”
Backup catcher Travis d’Arnaud has seen O’Hoppe at his best, and he sums up the starter’s potential as 30 home runs, catching a staff full of winners and constantly improving. That would be a big jump for the Angels, but it remains to be seen if O’Hoppe can realize it on the field.