ANAHEIM -- A day after being hit under his chin in a freak incident on a warmup backswing from A's shortstop Jacob Wilson, Angels catcher Logan O'Hoppe was placed on the 7-day concussion injured list before Monday’s 12-3 loss in the series opener against the Twins at Angel Stadium.
The injury occurred when Wilson twirled his bat back as part of his practice swing, and it hit O’Hoppe under his facemask in the seventh inning of Sunday’s 4-3 win. O’Hoppe immediately went to the ground in pain and left the game under his own power along with interim manager Ray Montgomery and head athletic trainer Mike Frostad.
But after undergoing testing after the game, O’Hoppe was placed on the 7-day IL on Monday with fellow backstop Sebastián Rivero getting his contract selected from Triple-A Salt Lake. Outfielder Jorge Soler was transferred to the 60-day IL to make room for Rivero on the active roster. O’Hoppe hasn’t been cleared to speak to the media because he’s in concussion protocol but Montgomery heard that he was feeling better.
“He’s doing better,” Montgomery said. “But we gotta really exercise caution with these things. We don't want him to feel anything other than good.”
But it’s a rough blow for O’Hoppe, as the 25-year-old has endured a tough second full season as a starting catcher. He’s hit .217/.260/.386 with 19 homers, seven doubles and 43 RBIs in 109 games this year. He’s slumped in the second half by batting .189/.244/.288 with two homers in 32 games.
With three weeks left in the season, O’Hoppe could still return before the end of the season. With O’Hoppe out, veteran Travis d’Arnaud will take over regular catching duties, but it was Rivero who got the start behind the plate on Monday.
Rivero, 26, batted eighth in his first Major League game since Oct. 5, 2022. Rivero previously played in parts of two seasons with the Royals in ’21 and ’22 and was thrilled to get back to the Majors after nearly three years. He made the most of it, going 1-for-3 with a two-run double in the second inning and a walk in the ninth.
“It means a lot,” Rivero said. “Just telling my wife that I'm back here last night was something memorable, because she started crying. We both started crying because we prayed so much to get back here. Being here is not easy. You have to work for it.”
Montgomery said Rivero’s double in his first at-bat in the big leagues in nearly three years was one of the lone bright spots in an otherwise ugly loss that saw the Angels commit four errors and several defensive misplays while also going 2-for-9 with runners in scoring position.
“That was good,” Montgomery said. “It was nice to see. But again we had chances and we capitalized there but we still had chances behind that and didn't get it done. But I was happy for him in that regard.”
Montgomery said he threw Rivero right into the fire because of his previous work with right-hander Caden Dana. Dana, ranked as the club’s No. 5 prospect by MLB Pipeline, threw to Rivero several times while with Triple-A Salt Lake this year. Dana struck out nine over 4 2/3 innings but walked five and gave up two homers to Royce Lewis to get charged with five runs on five hits.
“Familiarity is the biggest thing, right?” Montgomery said. “He's caught him a few times. His defensive stuff obviously speaks for itself. I think it’s comforting for Dana, too. Having thrown to him, their routine, their conversations, and he's a pro, he knows what he's doing back there.”
Soler, meanwhile, was transferred to the 60-day IL, as he’s been out since July 24 with low back inflammation and has suffered a few recent setbacks. He’s now eligible to return for the final week of the season, but there’s still a chance it could conclude his year. Soler, 33, has hit .215/.293/.387 with 12 homers and 34 RBIs in 82 games this year and remains under contract next year for $16 million.
“I do think there's an outside chance he's back before we finish,” Montgomery said. “But I’ve been hopeful of that for a little while, too.”