Seven Straight Hits, Then a Fractured Bone: Nobody in Anaheim Is Ready For This Catching Nightmare

Alright, Emerald City, can we talk about what just went down with the Angels? Seriously, you can't make this stuff up. One minute, Sebastian Rivero is absolutely raking, stringing together seven straight hits. The next? He fouls off a pitch, and BAM, his season takes a four-week detour to the operating table with a fractured left hamate bone. What a cruel twist for a guy who was just finding his rhythm. The Angels put him on the 10-day injured list Wednesday, a day after the incident. You hate to see any player go through that, especially when they're hot.

Rivero's Run Ends in Agony

This whole thing unfolded Tuesday during the fifth inning of their 10-1 home victory against the Houston Astros. Rivero, 27, was feeling it at the plate, having already smacked two singles in the game, extending his impressive run to seven consecutive hits. Then came that one pitch, a foul tip that sent immense pain through his hand and wrist area. He was immediately pulled from the game, with fellow catcher Logan O'Hoppe stepping in to finish the at-bat. O'Hoppe took a called strike three, and that strikeout, incredibly, was charged to Rivero, officially ending his white-hot streak right there. A CT scan on Wednesday confirmed the worst: a fractured left hamate bone, requiring surgery and sidelining him for about four weeks. Before the injury, Rivero was batting .245 with eight RBIs in 24 games this season, adding to his 35 total appearances for the Angels over the last two years.

The Depth Chart Gets a Jolt

With Rivero out, the Angels wasted no time making moves to shore up their catching situation. They recalled 30-year-old Logan Porter from Triple-A Salt Lake. Porter recently signed a minor league contract after becoming a free agent and had been batting .241 with one homer and 10 RBIs in 17 games with the San Francisco Giants' Triple-A affiliate in Sacramento. His major league experience includes 16 games overall, spread across 11 with the Kansas City Royals in 2023, four with San Francisco last season, and one with the Giants this season, where he’s posted a .184 average with one homer and four RBIs. To create a spot for Porter on the 40-man roster, right-hander Jack Kochanowicz was transferred to the 60-day injured list. Kochanowicz, too, is facing a major setback, as the club announced Tuesday he'll soon undergo Tommy John surgery. And it doesn't stop there; the Angels also revealed Tuesday that third baseman Yoan Moncada is slated for right knee surgery next week, and first baseman Nolan Schanuel, who left Tuesday's game with left calf tightness, wasn't in Wednesday's starting lineup against the Astros. The Angels are patching holes left and right, and this Rivero news just piles on. With Moncada going under the knife and Schanuel nursing a tight calf, their depth is getting tested big time. It's early in the summer, but these kinds of hits to the roster can really set the tone. We'll be watching closely to see if Logan Porter can step up for them and how they navigate these rough waters. Go M's!

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.