Angels rumors: MLB Insider says Angels are involved in catching market

The Los Angeles Angels were involved in the Willson Contreras sweepstakes earlier this offseason and were one of the finalists before he signed with the St. Louis Cardinals. It's unclear how serious they were with Contreras but the fact that they were considered a finalist tells me gave him a somewhat competitive offer at the very least.

The Contreras rumors were a bit surprising as the Angels just traded for Logan O'Hoppe at the trade deadline and have Max Stassi on an extension. The Angels missed out on Contreras and we never heard much else about them being linked to other catchers. Until now.

Jon Morosi of MLB Network says that the Angels could be a team looking for another catcher.

Signing another catcher on a MLB deal would be counterproductive for the LA Angels.

The Angels have Max Stassi on the roster and he will either be a starter or a backup. The Angels have Matt Thaiss as well who is out of options. If the Angels opt to hold onto him and give him a bench spot, that's another catcher. They also, of course, have Logan O'Hoppe waiting in the wings.

Whether O'Hoppe makes the Opening Day roster or not I think will depend on how he does in Spring Training. If he hits well and is a competent defender, he'll make the team. If they think he needs a little more seasoning, he'll go to AAA. The Angels thought he was good enough to get called up for the final five games of the season, so it'll be interesting to see what they do with him.

Regardless of whether O'Hoppe will be ready on Opening Day or not, the Angels should not sign another catcher to a MLB deal. The only possible explanation for it would be if they thought O'Hoppe needed a full season in AAA. I think we all know he does not need a full season in Salt Lake.

Another reason to not bring in another catcher on a MLB deal is the fact that there're simply no good options.

Gary Sanchez was a promising catcher years ago but he's struggled defensively (although he did improve a lot this past season) and the bat isn't anything special either. Sanchez slashed .205/.282/.377 with 16 home runs and 61 RBI. Is he an upgrade over Stassi and Thaiss offensively? I really don't even know if that answer is clear-cut.

For Contreras, you'd see a massive jump in production going from bad to an all-star level. Going from Stassi to Sanchez you go from bad to a maybe little less bad? I'd still take Stassi and his glove over any free agent left right now.

If the Angels don't end up with Sanchez who do they want? Jorge Alfaro? Roberto Perez? The options here just aren't anything to write home about. I'd rather just give Matt Thaiss another shot.

If you're going to keep O'Hoppe down do it because you have a legitimate upgrade. Don't do it just for the sake of doing it.