Why 20-year-old Phillies prospect Logan O’Hoppe had the best 24 hours of his life
Logan O’Hoppe isn’t a household Phillies name, but he might have a cult following before the week is out.
O’Hoppe took baseball’s corner of the internet by storm on Monday night during the Phillies’ exhibition match against the Yankees in New York. A New York native, the 20-year-old O’Hoppe got up to bat in Yankee Stadium and seemed as giddy as a kid on Christmas morning. He grew up going to baseball games at Yankee Stadium from the age of nine, so it was a pretty big moment for O’Hoppe, and he was soaking it all in:
?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 21, 2020Logan O'Hoppe is a 20-year-old lifelong Yankees fan who is getting to play at Yankee Stadium for the first time as part of this exhibition game. He's also trying his hardest not to break into song and dance at the plate. pic.twitter.com/myKViiq5eN
— Hannah Keyser (@HannahRKeyser)
Logan O'Hoppe is a 20-year-old lifelong Yankees fan who is getting to play at Yankee Stadium for the first time as part of this exhibition game. He's also trying his hardest not to break into song and dance at the plate. pic.twitter.com/myKViiq5eN
— Hannah Keyser (@HannahRKeyser) July 21, 2020
He flied out deep to left field, but O’Hoppe’s at-bat was so pure and full of joy that it caught fire online, and eventually picked up the Jomboy breakdown treatment on Tuesday:
?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 21, 2020Logan O'Hoppe has the happiest at-bat one can have, a breakdown pic.twitter.com/IShy5xTDQp
— Jomboy (@Jomboy_)
Logan O'Hoppe has the happiest at-bat one can have, a breakdown pic.twitter.com/IShy5xTDQp
— Jomboy (@Jomboy_) July 21, 2020
That’s exactly the kind of sports moment I’ve been waiting for after four months of quarantine. What a cool time for O’Hoppe.
The Phillies prospect told NBC Sports Philadelphia’s John Clark on Tuesday that he was actually smiling because of Yankees catcher Eric Kratz.
“I said hello to him, said it was nice to meet him, we just had some small talk,” O’Hoppe said. “He was the one making me smile and laugh up there.”
But the moment was indeed a special one, O’Hoppe admitted.
“When [bench coach] Rob Thomson told me I was going to hit after [Alec] Bohm, I took a deep breath and kinda tried to take it in,” he said. “But after I hit in the cage, I got myself loose again, and I had to flip the switch and let myself know, you know, ‘This is still my job, and I still need to do well at it.’ I picked and chose my moments when I took it in, and when I had to lock it in, but I’m really happy with how it went.”
That story alone would’ve been enough to make O’Hoppe’s entire month, but he didn’t stop there.
In the Phillies’ intrasquad game Tuesday night, O’Hoppe was back in action and looking to make an impression at Citizens Bank Park.
He delivered, smacking a ball to deep right and then hustling on the base paths. O’Hoppe capitalized on an outfield mixup and scored an inside-the-park home run:
?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 22, 2020O'Hoppe day at summer camp.
Logan O'Hoppe with an inside-the-park homer during the Phillies' intrasquad game. pic.twitter.com/euZPQ6UDhk
— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly)
O'Hoppe day at summer camp.
— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) July 22, 2020
Logan O'Hoppe with an inside-the-park homer during the Phillies' intrasquad game. pic.twitter.com/euZPQ6UDhk
And he kept the ball:
Just the icing on top of his incredible 24 hours.
Phillies fans probably won’t see O’Hoppe again in 2020 after the regular season begins Friday, but he managed this week to leave a pretty strong impression.
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