The Official Los Angeles Angels 2017 Minor League Statlines & Prospects thread

[GrittyVeterans]

8 minutes ago, TroutField said:

Jahmai just continues to demolish A+ ball. 

 

Will he start in Mobile next year or will they have him repeat A+ for another half a season? 

No reason for him not to be in AA. The kid is closer to major league ready than many think IMO. I think he'll be a September callup next year. He does everything well

[Stax]

Jones needs to improve his pitch recognition. He sometimes takes ugly swings.

[totdprods]

2 hours ago, TroutField said:

Jahmai just continues to demolish A+ ball. 

 

Will he start in Mobile next year or will they have him repeat A+ for another half a season? 

I think they could do something similar to how they handled Hermosillo this year - have him start in A+ again in '18 but be ready to move him up in an instant if he opens those first few series hot. 

[Angelsjunky]

I would start him in AA next year - give him the full year and then, assuming he does well, give him a September call-up and a chance to win the starting LF job in 2019. Chances are he'll start 2019 in AAA and then reach the majors later in the year, but I think he'll be up for good sometime in 2019.

But Jahmai is on the fast-track now. There's really no reason to start him at A+ next year - he can continue his development in AA, which is a substantial jump from A+ and in many ways the highest talent level in the minors. AA will be the big test, in other words.

[totdprods]

Sunday, August 13th, 2017:
Salt Lake (60-61) lost 3-5 to Sacramento (51-69)
Michael Hermosillo: 2-5, 2 R, HR (2), RBI, K
Ramon Flores: 1-3, 3B, RBI, BB, K
Carlos Perez: 2-4, R
Rey Navarro: 3-4
David Fletcher: 2-4
Jose Alvarez: 2 IP, 2 K - at AAA, 10 IP: 0.90 ERA, .194 BAA, 0.90 WHIP, .194 BAA, 2 BB, 8 K

Mobile (56-62) lost 2-11 to Pensacola (62-57)
Brennon Lund: 3-5, R, 2 K -  first 10 games at AA, slashing .444/.447/.556/1.003 - 1 BB, 11 K. Overall, 405 AB, .326/.397/.437/.834
Taylor Ward: 3-4, 2B, BB
Jose Rojas (3B): 2-5, K
Zach Houchins: 3-5, 2B, RBI, K - 2nd half (45 G, 165 AB): slashing .279/.346/.436/.782 with 9 2B, 3B, 5 HR, 30 RBI, 16 BB, 27 K 
Zach Gibbons: 1-4, R, HR (3), RBI - in August (10 G, 42 AB) - .333/.349/.500/.849
Jaime Barria: 4 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 5 BB, K - scuffling a bit of late, but still solid at AA: 11 GS, 3.34 ERA, .256 BAA, 1.25 WHIP, 14 BB, 45 K

Inland Empire (56-64) lost 3-9 in 10 innings to Rancho Cucamonga (66-54)
Jahmai Jones: 1-4, R, 2 K, SB (6) - 16 game hitting streak
Ryan Clark: 5 IP, 4 H, ER, 3 K - second straight solid start after disastrous 8/1 start (10 ER in 3.1 IP), former 5th round pick ('15, ATL)
Mike Kaelin: 3 IP, 3 K

Burlington (50-68) lost 1-2 in 11 innings to Peoria (57-61)
Leonardo Rivas: 0-5, RBI, K, SB (6)
Jonah Todd: 3-5, 2B, K
Erik Manoah: 5.1 IP, 4 H, ER, 4 K - on the year, 23 G, 20 GS, 104 IP; 3.81 ERA, .231 BAA, 1.38 WHIP, 56 BB, 84 K
Kyle Halbohn: 2 IP, BB, 3 K - plucked from Yankees org, 6'8" RHP - 20.1 IP, 5.31 ERA, .303 BAA, 11 BB, 28 K 
Carlos Salazar: 2 IP, H, 2 BB, 4 K - since joining Burlington, 24 IP, 18 BB, 34 K - .202 BAA, 4.13 ERA

Orem (35-13) won 15-2 vs Missoula (22-27)
Torii Hunter: 1-5, 2 R, 2B, RBI
Brandon Marsh: 4-5, 3 R, 2 2B, RBI, CS (1)
Ryan Vega: 2-4, R, HR (2), 4 RBI,  BB, K
Manuel Guzman: 2-5, BB - 22 years old, still rocking a .377/.474/.548/1.022 slash in 146 AB (27 BB, 15 K)
Spencer Griffin: 3-6, 3 R, 2B, K - 20 years old, in 18 G, 72 AB: .278/.338/.444/.782
Harrison Wenson: 3-5, 2 R, 2 2B, HR (10), 3 RBI, K - 22 years old, in 22 G (82 AB): .366/.466/.817/1.283 - 17 XBH, 13 BB, 17 K.
Franklin Torres: 3-6, R, 2B, 3 RBI - 20 year old IF, slashing .286/.336/.403 with 16 XBH, 16 BB, 23 K in 196 AB
Simon Mathews: 5 IP, 6 H, ER, 2 BB, 3 K
James Ziemba: 2 IP, H, BB, 2 K

[Inside Pitch]

20 hours ago, Stax said:

Jones needs to improve his pitch recognition. He sometimes takes ugly swings.

Yup...   His K rate in High A is ugly -- his walk rate is pretty brutal too..    First taste of the level and all that -- but, his peripherals aren't as good as his triple slash numbers.

Still, it's his age 19 season (20 now), and he's not having the bat knocked out of his hands.

[GrittyVeterans]

Taylor Ward has had a very strong season, as much as we have all complained about that draft pick. He's on track to be in the Majors some time next year backing up Maldonado

[Chuck]

25 minutes ago, GrittyVeterans said:

Taylor Ward has had a very strong season, as much as we have all complained about that draft pick. He's on track to be in the Majors some time next year backing up Maldonado

He certainly has. 

Good OBP and I believe he'll hit for more power down the road. Probably 10-15 a season once he completely fills out.

My question to you all is, how good is his arm strength and accuracy? How well does he work with the pitchers?

[GrittyVeterans]

22 minutes ago, Chuckster70 said:

He certainly has. 

Good OBP and I believe he'll hit for more power down the road. Probably 10-15 a season once he completely fills out.

My question to you all is, how good is his arm strength and accuracy? How well does he work with the pitchers?

I'm no scout but from what I've seen he's very solid behind the dish. That's certainly not going to hold him back IMO

[Make Angels Great Again]

I remember hearing when he was drafted his defense was his strongest asset.

If he can hit .250/.350/.400 and provide at or near GG level defense, that is a phenomenal starting catcher. Maybe they knew what they were doing after all with this pick? We'll have to see.

[Dave Saltzer]

1 hour ago, Chuckster70 said:

He certainly has. 

Good OBP and I believe he'll hit for more power down the road. Probably 10-15 a season once he completely fills out.

My question to you all is, how good is his arm strength and accuracy? How well does he work with the pitchers?

Chuck, 

I've timed him at 1.85 to second once, and consistently in the 1.9 to 1.95 range. Never heard any complaints by any pitchers about him. They like working with him. People have given him some crap from where he was picked and because of Mathis, but he is is own player, and should be evaluated as such. I'm still very high on him as a player. He's not Adell, Jones, or Canning, but he definitely should not be overlooked as a prospect, and is in the 6-10 range, IMHO. 

[Inside Pitch]

2 hours ago, Chuckster70 said:

He certainly has. 

Good OBP and I believe he'll hit for more power down the road. Probably 10-15 a season once he completely fills out.

My question to you all is, how good is his arm strength and accuracy? How well does he work with the pitchers?

There was never any question about his arm strength but there were concerns about how well he moved behind the plate..   He's got his pop time under 2.0 seconds most of the time.... being under 2 secs is a nice but not as important as people would have you believe..   So far he's caught 38% of would be base-stealers in AA...  and 31% in High A...  So he's been decent but nothing to write home about.   All in all, he's doing fine.  Nobody will complain about a 30% CS % if he's putting up a .350 OBP as a catcher.   

Being at AA, I'm guessing he's in line to start working with Jose Molina on the finer points of pitch framing soon...   If he can get that part of the catching game down, keep his CS% over 30% and get on base anywhere close to where he has in the minors he will be considered one of the better Angels catchers in recent history.

[Inside Pitch]

Sickles midseason top 20 review....    he's basically looking at how they have done -- not a new list

https://www.minorleagueball.com/2017/8/14/16145426/mid-season-review-los-angeles-angels-top-20-prospects-for-2017

[Angelsjunky]

Any chance Harrison Wenson will translate to higher levels? Love that power.

[totdprods]

38 minutes ago, Angelsjunky said:

Any chance Harrison Wenson will translate to higher levels? Love that power.

Likely just a result of the environment and his competition, but man those are some gaudy numbers.

[Second Base]

4 hours ago, Chuckster70 said:

He certainly has. 

Good OBP and I believe he'll hit for more power down the road. Probably 10-15 a season once he completely fills out.

My question to you all is, how good is his arm strength and accuracy? How well does he work with the pitchers?

Very athletic, moves very well behind and in front of the plate. Had a ton of trouble blocking balls in the dirt last year, and his handling of the pitching staff and attention to detail were lacking.

It's those subtleties that make Maldonado a great catcher and not just another defensive specialist. That's what they're training Ward to be. As I understand, it's been a process because this isn't who he was coming out of college.

The arm will always play up, but like most catchers, his ability to prevent stolen bases is incumbent on his pitchers holding runners on.

Ultimately, I think Ward will be a solid platoon catcher. If we ignore the round he was drafted in, and the developmental level despite coming out of college (think Cron) most folks would be ecstatic over Ward. As it remains, most are tepid. 

Its hard to get people jazzed about a platoon catcher.

[Second Base]

Also thought I'd pass on what I've seen from Hermosillo since July.  He's using the whole field and is beginning to drive the ball to the opposite field as well.  Before, his power was strictly pull, but now it appears he's making a more concerted effort to drive the ball to right-center.  One thing I'm fairly certain of, which I don't think any of the other sites have caught onto yet, I think Hermosillo's power is going to play up in the majors.  Everyone else lists it as a question mark, but that's just not what I'm seeing at all.  He's very strong, very athletic.  I think we have someone that the rest of the league will wonder where he came from. 

[Docwaukee]

I would like to eat a big heap of crow if Taylor Ward becomes an everyday mlb catcher.  Certainly, he's not as good as his AA numbers would suggest (unless he turned a corner in a way that we've rarely seen).  But, right now it's looking like his 2016 was more the aberration.  He's 23 and sporting a .371 obp for his minor league career through AA.  And his peripherals are pretty good.  He hasn't shown a ton of in game power yet, but when he does get a hold of one, it's a no doubter.  At the very least, he's on the radar again.  

[Docwaukee]

btw, Ward leads the league in RBF (resting bitch face)

[totdprods]

Monday, August 14th, 2017:
Salt Lake (62-62) won 8-2 vs. Sacramento (51-70)
Michael Hermosillo: 1-4, R, BB, K, CS (1)
Ramon Flores: 2-4, 2 R, 2B, HR (6), RBI, BB, K
Rey Navarro: 2-5, 2 RBI, K - .282/.342/.408/.750 in last 28 G, 103 AB
David Fletcher: 0-4 - at AAA (28 G, 121 AB) slashing .240/.276/.273/.548 - 4 BB, 16 K
Nolan Fontana: 0-2, R, 2 BB, SB (10) - he's had a great year at AAA; (91 G, 315 AB) - .276/.395/.441/.836, 33 XBH, 62 BB, 83 K, 10 SB
Manny Banuelos: IP, H, K - as a reliever, 28 G, 53.2 IP, 3.86 ERA, only 1 HR allowed, 55 K - could be a LHRP in Sept?
Keep an eye on...
Osmer Morales: 7 IP, 8 H, 2 ER, 6 K - he has been great in his first 6 GS at AAA; 33 IP, 3.00 ERA, .242 BAA, 1.30 WHIP, 13 BB, 29 K

Mobile (56-63) lost 7-9 vs. Pensacola (63-57)
Mobile scored all 7 runs in the 7th inning
Matt Thaiss: 1-4 R, 2B, RBI, BB, 3 K
Taylor Ward: 3-5, R, 2 RBI
Zach Houchins: 1-5, R, HR (10), 2 RBI, K - second half, 46 G, 170 AB: .276/.342/.447/.789 with 9 2B, 3B, 6 HR, 32 RBI, 16 BB, 28 K
Jesus Castillo (2nd AA start): 5 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 7 K, 1 HR
Damien Magnifico (demoted to AA): IP, H, BB, 3 K
Connor Lillis-White: 0.1 IP, 2 H, 3 ER, BB, K
Greg Mahle: 1.1 IP, 2 H - at AA (24 G, 33.2 IP) 2.94 ERA, .214 BAA, 1.04 WHIP, 0 HRA, 10 BB, 28 K
Holy shit, what is up with this guy?
Brennon Lund: 3-5, R, K - he is now slashing .463/.465/.561/1.026 in his first 11 games at AA. Between Burlington, IE, and Mobile, he is slashing .329/.399/.439/.838 on year with 29 XBH,, 41 BB, 79 K, and 20 SB over 103 G, 410 AB. Only 22 years old.

Inland Empire (57-64) won 3-1 vs. Lake Elsinore (56-65)
Jahmai Jones: 1-4, R, BB, K, SB (7) - 17 game hitting streak
Jared Walsh: 2-5, 2B, 3 RBI, 2 K
Keith Grieshaber: 3-4, 2B
Sam Holland: 2.2 IP, 0 H, 2 BB, 2 K - 40 G, 55 IP - 2.78 ERA, .225 BAA, 1.20 WHIP, 20 BB, 53 K all at IE
Keep an eye on...
Luis Pena: 5.1 IP, 3 H, ER, 3 BB, 11 K, HR - in the second half (11 GS, 65.1 IP) - 4.27 ERA, .263 BAA, 1.38 WHIP, 23 BB, 83 K - K/9 of 11.4

Burlington (51-68) won 2-1 over Cedar Rapids (62-58)
Leonardo Rivas: 1-3, R, RBI, BB, K
Jonah Todd: 1-2, 2 BB, CS (2)
Richard Fecteau: 1-4, RBI
Zac Ryan: 2 IP, R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K - at Burlington (10 G 16.2 IP): 1.08 ERA, .224 BAA, 1.32 WHIP, 7 BB, 18 K
Flying under the radar with a nice season...
Andrew Vinson: 5 IP, 3 H, 4 K - like Bridwell and Ramirez, Vinson was known first as a reliever. He converted to the rotation this year and while his overall numbers aren't eye-popping, in his last 10 GS: 3.47 ERA, 49.1 IP, 45 K, 13 BB, 46 H. 

Orem (35-14) lost 7-8 in 10 innings to Helena (19-30); completion of 8/9 postponement
Manuel Guzman: 2-4, 2 R, HR (3), RBI, BB, K
Brandon Marsh: 1-5, K
David MacKinnon: 1-3, R, HR (2), RBI, 2 BB
Kevin Williams: 2-5, 2 R
Franklin Torres: 2-4, R, 2B, RBI
Angel Molina: 2-3, 2B, HR (2), 3 RBI
Jeremy Beasley: 3 IP, H, ER, 2 BB, 2 K, HR - first run allowed in first 15 IP at Orem. 0.60 ERA, .102 BAA, 0.73 WHIP with 6 BB, 18 K so far. 

Orem (35-14) lost 3-4 in 7 innings to Helena (19-30)
Torii Hunter: 0-3, R, BB, K, OF assist
Ryan Vega: 2-3, 2 2B, 2 RBI, BB - in 2017, 47 G, 200 AB at Orem: .315/.399/.420/.819 - 42 RBI, 25 BB, 40 K, 14 XBH - still only 20 years old. 
Edrick Agosto: 5 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, HR

AZL Angels (23-18) won 3-2 in 10 innings vs. AZL White Sox (20-20)
Jacob Pearson: 0-4, first game since Aug. 5th
Jordon Adell: 1-3, 3B (6), RBI, 2 BB
Nonie Williams: 0-3, K
Gleyvin Pineda: 2-2, 2B, RBI, SB (3)
Johan Sala: 2-3, 3B, 2 BB
Zane Gurwitz: 3-4, R, 2B, K
Jose Soriano: 4 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 K
John Swanda: 2 IP, BB, 2 K

DSL Angels (26-31) won 4-3 in 11 innings vs. DSL Rockies (29-30)
Miguel de la Cruz (DH): 2-5, R, K
Julio de la Cruz (2B): 2-4, R, 2B, RBI, BB, K, CS (6)
Tulio Santa Maria: 4 IP, H, BB, 2 K
Emilker Guzman: 3 IP, BB, K - 18 years old, 5'10", 160 - in 35 IP, 0.77 ERA, .175 BAA, 0.89 WHIP, 10 BB, 25 K

[Second Base]

6 hours ago, Dochalo said:

I would like to eat a big heap of crow if Taylor Ward becomes an everyday mlb catcher.  Certainly, he's not as good as his AA numbers would suggest (unless he turned a corner in a way that we've rarely seen).  But, right now it's looking like his 2016 was more the aberration.  He's 23 and sporting a .371 obp for his minor league career through AA.  And his peripherals are pretty good.  He hasn't shown a ton of in game power yet, but when he does get a hold of one, it's a no doubter.  At the very least, he's on the radar again.  

I'm guessing you watched the video of his HR they have on his Milb.com page. Yeah that one went Trumbo distance. 

I think ultimately, Ward turns into an Iannetta type. Solid defense, good OBP and around 10-15 HR's each year. His arm is better than Chris' but Chris is probably a more intuitive defender. Ward has more power, but Iannetta's probably plays better in-game.

[totdprods]

2 minutes ago, Scotty@AW said:

I'm guessing you watched the video of his HR they have on his Milb.com page. Yeah that one went Trumbo distance. 

I think ultimately, Ward turns into an Iannetta type. Solid defense, good OBP and around 10-15 HR's each year. His arm is better than Chris' but Chris is probably a more intuitive defender. Ward has more power, but Iannetta's probably plays better in-game.

Definitely agreeing with the Iannetta comp as well, and I'd be happy with that. Iannetta was a solid 1.5 - 2.5 WAR catcher for a bulk of his career. 

Their minor league numbers are fairly similar too, except Iannetta was showing more power.

[Cdaniel]

Is Calhoun a good comp for Lund?

[totdprods]

7 minutes ago, Cdaniel said:

Is Calhoun a good comp for Lund?

Kole was showing way more power. Lund looks like he may have an advantage with contact, perhaps speed and discipline.

Maybe closer to a Jon Jay type? 

[totdprods]

I'm actually really liking the catchers in the Angels org this year. 
Maldonado has been an absolute revelation, and I actually really like Graterol as our back-up. He doesn't have a ceiling high enough to be affected by limited playing time, he's been great defensively, and just good enough with the bat.

It doesn't end there though. We have intriguing catcher prospects on literally every team. 
Carlos Perez, AAA
.364/.435/.509/.944 in 58 G, 255 PA - 16 2B, 2 3B, 4 HR, 34 RBI, 29 BB, 31 K, 43% CS%

Taylor Ward, A+/AA
.267/.383/.408/.791 in 74 G, 337 PA - 13 2B, 1 3B, 8 HR, 44 RBI, 53 BB, 54 K, 31% CS%

Wade Wass, AA, 
.257/.364/.482/.846 in 59 G, 226 PA - 8 2B, 1 3B, 11 HR, 24 RBI, 23 BB, 69 K, 27% CS%

Jose Briceno, AA
.196/.240/.316/.557 in 82 G, 339 PA - 10 2B, 2 3B, 8 HR, 40 RBI, 19 BB, 65 K, 37% CS%
Hasn't hit much, but strong defensively - over career, thrown out 137 of 200 (41%) - was other player in Simmons trade.

Michael Barash, A+
.226/.309/.372/.681 in 77 G, 334 PA - 19 2B, 0 3B, 8 HR, 37 RBI, 35 BB, 69 K, 22% CS%
He's only 22 years old, and has shown decent power and plate discipline with 37 XBH and 46 walks to 97 K over his career (120 G)

Jack Kruger, A/A+
.244/.304/.334/.639 in 88 G, 380 PA - 13 2B, 3 3B, 4 HR, 31 RBI, 27 BB, 72 K, 37% CS%
Angels org seems high on him - saw good bit of time in ST and was slotted into clean-up at IE. Also only 22 years old, throw out 33 of 57. 

Julian Leon, A
.314/.382/.500/.882 in 32 G, 131 PA - 10 2B, 0 3B, 4 HR, 17 RBI, 9 BB, 29 K, 25% CS%
Only 21 years old, struggled a bit in limited time at IE, but as shown above, hit very well in Burlington so far. Was in Dodgers system '13-'16.

Franklin Navarro, A/Rk-Orem
.273/.360/.351/.710 in 23 G, 89 PA - 6 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 12 RBI, 11 BB, 21 K, 35% CS%
A bit older than his competition, but still only 22. In his career thrown out 74 of 132 (36%), was in Detroit system '12-'16

Harrison Wenson, Rk-AZL/Rk-Orem
.337/.444/.739/1.184 in 26 G, 117 PA - 7 2B, 0 3B, 10 HR, 37 RBI, 15 BB, 18 K, 37% CS%
Yeah, he's old for the competition at 23, but Jesus Christ. Imagine he jumps straight to IE next year to place him with similarly aged players.

Keinner Pina, Rk-Orem
.296/.392/.326/.718 in 34 G, 158 PA - 4 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR 25 RBI, 17 BB, 14 K, 44% CS%
He's only 20 years old, and showing great contact/discipline over his career. Has also thrown out 37 of 53 (41%) in his career.