Perry Minasian Reveals Why Angels Surprisingly Cut Player After One Game

The veteran catcher has a chance to pursue new opportunities early in camp.

The Los Angeles Angels made a surprise decision over the weekend, as they released the recently-signed Francisco Mejía from his minor league deal.

Mejía signed with the Angels in February, but only lasted one spring game before being released.

Angels general manager Perry Minasian revealed the reasoning behind the decision to cut ties with Mejía at this point in the spring.

“He wants to be in the big leagues. He’s been in the big leagues a long time. As currently constructed, it would have been very difficult to make this team, which was his goal.”

— Perry Minasian, 

via the Orange County Register

Minasian made it clear the Angels were making this move for Mejía's sake, as he wouldn't have been able to break camp with the team barring an unforeseen circumstance.

The Angels have Logan O'Hoppe as the everyday catcher, and 40-man roster depth behind him in the form of Matt Thaiss. Chad Wallach isn't on the 40-man roster, but the Angels have used the veteran regularly over the past two years and brought him back in 2024 on a minor league contract.

Mejia, formerly a top prospect involved in multiple blockbuster trades throughout his career, will now look for a new team as Opening Day nears.

Mejía has been with Cleveland, Tampa Bay and San Diego across his seven-year MLB career. He has a career .239 batting average, with 29 home runs and 118 RBIs.