Athletics' Shea Langeliers: Reassigned to minor-league camp
Rotowire
Langeliers was reassigned to minor-league camp Thursday, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Langeliers was acquired from Atlanta by Oakland as part of the return for Matt Olson mid-March. He closed the 2021 season at Triple-A, though it's not particularly surprising that he will start the new campaign in the minors as Sean Murphy will retain the starting role behind the dish, and the Athletics also recently signed Stephen Vogt. Despite some depth at the position, Langeliers could still be in line for his big-league debut at some point in 2022.
Langeliers was traded from Atlanta to Oakland along with Cristian Pache, Ryan Cusick and Joey Estes in exchange for Matt Olson on Monday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.
Langeliers is a really strong catching prospect across the board, projecting for above-average game power and above-average defense behind the plate. He hit .258/.338/.498 with 22 home runs, a 26.2 K% and a 9.7 BB% in 370 plate appearances at Double-A as a 23-year-old. Langeliers may spend a good chunk of the season at Triple-A, but he could be expedited to the majors if Sean Murphy gets injured or traded.
Atlanta promoted Langeliers from Double-A Mississippi to Triple-A Gwinnett on Tuesday, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.
After batting .258 with 22 home runs and 52 RBI in 92 games to help lead Mississippi to a Double-A South title, Langeliers will just to the minors' highest level for Gwinnett's final five games of the campaign. The 23-year-old will likely head into 2022 as Gwinnett's No. 1 backstop, and he could be a candidate for his first promotion to the big leagues later in the summer.
Braves' Shea Langeliers: Set to join major-league camp
Rotowire
Langeliers was invited to big-league camp Monday.
Langeliers will get the chance to catch Atlanta's big-league arms for a few weeks, though he probably won't be joining them on a permanent basis this year. The 2019 ninth-overall pick played 54 games at the Low-A level that season but was prevented from advancing up the ladder last year due to the canceled minor-league campaign.
Langeliers will be a part of the Braves' 60-man roster, Gabe Burns of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
Langeliers is likely seen as the top candidate to be the team's catcher of the future, and he'll get the chance to develop with the 60-man pool to begin the season. The 22-year-old was very effective over a small sample in major-league spring training this season, going 6-for-14 with a home run and five RBI, but he's unlikely to join the major-league club during regular season play in 2020.
Braves' Shea Langeliers: Ticketed for advanced pitching
Rotowire
Langeliers will open at either High-A or Double-A, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.
O'Brien notes that Langeliers has likely passed William Contreras as the team's catcher of the future. The No. 9 overall pick in 2019 was seen as a glove-first catcher out of Baylor, and he impressed the big-league staff and the veteran players with his work behind the dish this spring. In a tiny sample, he hit .429 with one home run, three strikeouts and one walk in 15 plate appearances in big-league spring training. His glove and arm will likely get him significant playing time someday in the majors, but it remains to be seen how much damage he will do offensively.
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Braves' Shea Langeliers: Invited to big-league camp
Rotowire
Langeliers will join the Braves' big-league camp this spring.
Langeliers was taken with the ninth-overall pick in last year's draft. He's not close to pushing for a big-league roster spot, as his only professional experience to date has come with Low-A Rome, where he hit a modest .255/.310/.343 in 54 games.
