The Double-A Southern League Player of the Month was awarded to Colombian-born Gustavo Campero of the Rocket City Trash Pandas, one of the Los Angeles Angels minor league affiliates. The 26-year-old catcher had a red-hot July, hitting .333 with an OPS of 1.088. Along with these impressive averages, Campero has been able to consistently hit for power this July, hitting four home runs and 14 extra-base hits in just 21 games.
With Angels long-time superstar Mike Trout being sidelined for the rest of the season due to injury and the Angels currently sitting in fourth in the AL West, the Los Angeles ballclub has been bringing players up from the Trash Pandas and testing their talents at the major league level.
Campero seems to be the next player in line to be promoted to the major league roster. Campero had an extremely impressive July, but the switch hitter has been impressive all season for the Trash Pandas. The Colombian catcher boasts an impressive batting line of .282/.401/.493.
Although there are tons of holes in the Angels rosters, surprisingly enough, the catcher position is not one of them. Logan O’Hoppe is a terrific young catcher for the Angels and is currently tied for first on the team with 16 home runs and has the highest batting average on the team with a .277. Additionally, backup catcher Matt Thaiss has been perfectly serviceable for the team, batting .250 this season.
Although Gustavo Campero’s path to the major leagues is unclear, the 26-year-old catcher clearly deserves a shot at the big leagues. It is quite possible that a team needing a catcher this offseason will try to acquire the switch-hitting catcher for the 2025 season if he is still in the minor leagues after post-season baseball wraps up.
Photo Credit: Gustavo Campero #57 of Colombia celebrates reaching first base safely in the second inning during the game between Nicaragua and Colombia at Sonora Stadium on September 26, 2021 in Hermosillo, Mexico. (Photo by Luis Gutierrez/ Norte Photo/Getty Images)
