Catching prospect Edgar Quero has quickly ascended the Los Angeles Angels’ prospect rankings since signing with the organization as an amateur free agent out of Cuba in early 2021.
The 19-year-old was recently ranked the No. 10 catching prospect in all of baseball by MLB Pipeline after a stellar 2022 season with Single-A Inland Empire that saw him bat .312/.435/.530 with 35 doubles and 85 runs scored in 111 games.
Quero is entering his third professional season with the Angels organization and was invited to big Spring Training camp as a non-roster invitee. He has relished the experience of being around the likes of Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout, per Sarah Valenzuela of the L.A. Times:
“I’m very excited to be here,” he said in Spanish during the first week of camp. “They noticed my work from last year, had a good season, and I’m happy they gave me the opportunity to be here with big league players like Shohei [Ohtani], [Mike] Trout and all the guys who are on the team.”
Quero received high praise from Max Stassi and Angels catching coordinator Drew Butera, who believe the switch-hitter has a bright future ahead of him:
“I think sky’s the limit for him,” Stassi said of Quero. “He’s definitely really advanced for his age. I’m looking forward to watching him play. It’s amazing what he’s doing at that age.”
Said Drew Butera, the Angels’ catching coordinator: “We know that he’s going to be a special talent.”
Inland Empire 66ers manager Dave Stapleton, who coached Quero in his first two Minor League seasons, believes the young catcher has a strong work ethic both on and off the field:
“He’s done a tremendous amount of work — and I know it might seem funny — but a tremendous amount of work on his English,” said Stapleton, who’s managed two of Quero’s teams, the 2021 Arizona League Angels and the 2022 66ers. “For him to be able to do that and communicate with the pitchers that don’t speak any Spanish at all has been a huge growth in him.
“His story is really second to none being from Cuba, so when you really get into what he’s been able to do and the growth he’s made, it’s tremendous.”
Quero has many fans in the Angels organization and will look to build on his breakout 2022 season. He will likely begin the year with Single-A Inland Empire and should be able to earn a promotion to High-A Tri-City at some point.
Angels’ Logan O’Hoppe working ‘to get comfortable early on’ with Shohei Ohtani
In addition to Quero, Logan O’Hoppe was ranked among the top catching prospects in all of baseball by MLB Pipeline. He immediately became the Angels’ top prospect when he was acquired by the Philadelphia Phillies in exchange for Brandon Marsh at the trade deadline last year.
O’Hoppe projects to be the Angels’ starting catcher this season, and one of his early focuses in Spring Training is getting on the same page with Shohei Ohtani.
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