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After months of no news, the hot stove is finally heating up. On Friday, the Angels reportedly agreed to a one-year deal with catcher, Kurt Suzuki.
Angels in agreement with free-agent catcher Kurt Suzuki on one-year, $1.5M contract, source tells The Athletic.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) January 15, 2021
This gives the Angels some catching depth to go along with Max Stassi.
Suzuki, who will be 37 years old this season, won a World Series with the Nationals in 2019. This past season, the catcher appeared in only 33 games, catching 30 of them and being a DH in the other three.
In 2020, he hit .270/.349/.396/.745 with two home runs and 17 RBI.
As Fabian Ardaya mentioned, Suzuki is a local product as he played college baseball at Cal State Fullerton. There is also some familiarity within the program, as he spent time with new Angels GM Perry Minasian during their time in Atlanta a few years ago. He also reunites with his former teammate, Anthony Rendon.
With the Angels being linked to names this offseason such as JT Realmuto and Wilson Contreras, you would think that this takes them out of the running for those players.