Angels Rumors: Halos Linked to All-Star Free Agent Catcher

The Angels currently have three catchers on their 40-man roster. Max Stassi had an excellent season in 2020 and was solid in 2021, but he had a terrible year at the plate in 2022. Matt Thaiss plays several positions, but just 43 of his 278 career plate appearances have come as a catcher. And Logan O'Hoppe, who came over from Philadelphia in the Brandon Marsh trade, is definitely the catcher of the future but he might not be quite ready to be the catcher of the present.

According to MLB.com, the Halos might be on the hunt for a catcher to bridge the gap until O'Hoppe is totally ready.

"MLB.com's Jon Paul Morosi said during Friday's edition of Hot Stove that he's been told three teams -- the Giants, Royals and Angels -- are still in the market for a catcher. The top player remaining in that market is Gary Sánchez, and Morosi sees the power-hitting backstop as a possibility for each club. ...

The Angels have three catchers on their 40-man roster, led by Max Stassi and the club's No. 1 prospect, Logan O'Hoppe. However, Sánchez would provide a much more potent bat than the former, and Los Angeles may not be ready to hand the starting job to O'Hoppe, who is just 22 years old."

Sanchez would be an interesting option for the Angels, and I'm not sure I mean that in a good way, even if they could get him on a one-year deal. He's had his struggles defensively, and his OPS+ over the last three years has been just 90, 10% worse than league average. He still has some pop in his bat, but there's a very real chance — probably even a likelihood — that O'Hoppe will be a better hitter than Sanchez in 2023.

Throw in the fact that O'Hoppe is the future for the Angels, and it wouldn't make much sense to sign Sanchez unless it was such an inexpensive deal that they wouldn't feel bad cutting him a month into the season if necessary. If Morosi is right that there are three teams after Sanchez, it's unlikely his price would be low enough for it to make sense.