Angels Depth Chart 2019-23

[Angelsjunky]

Alright, I've been dabbling with this over the last few days, trying to get a sense of the future of the team, complete with minor league options. These charts are by no means authorative - just my first stab at it. Feel free to comment and I'm happy to make adjustments if you convince me. 

The categorizations are, of course, subjective, although the major league players far less so than the prospects.  I included only those prospects who I believe have a better than average chance of becoming at least major league role players (bench/platoon), and/or could be considered "Grade C" or higher. You might take issue with some exclusions (e.g. Torii Hunter Jr, Brennan Lund types), but in some cases I didn't want to over-complicate things and just included the best prospect at a position per level.

I tried to make this visually intuitive, so that darker areas can be understood that the team is all set and doesn't need to make changes. So we look at the lighter areas for ways to improve the team. Then you cross-reference with the prospects, to see what is coming up through the farm. Hopefully it is obvious that the players are listed by years of club control. 

Some comments.

Looking at this chart, I'd say the biggest long-term issues are:

Catcher: The Angels have nothing more than role players on the major league roster (Briceno and Ancia) and only one decent prospect in the pipeline in Jack Kruger, who is no more than a Grade C/C+ type and probably a couple years away. 

Starting Pitching: A couple things stand out. One, there is no true ace - unless Ohtani is both healthy and develops to his full potential, but right now I cannot categorize him as such. Two, while the Angels have four average-to-good starters in Ohtani, Skaggs, Heaney, and Barria, after that it becomes rather mediocre...some potential, but no one has emerged yet. Three, while there are some solid prospects, there aren't any truly elite pitching prospects in the organization.

There are other weak spots, but every other position either has a current good or better starter or someone on the near horizon. So we've got some nice depth here.

 

 

 

 

[Angelsjunky]

Quick note on Ohtani. He's very hard to categorize. I ended up changing him from a Star to Good Player for DH because, for one, his production this year has been as a Good Player and two, he's part-time so the DH spot is really him and whomever he's platooning with. 

That said, obviously there's Star potential there. If he ends up DHing full-time next year, he could be bumped up.

[WeatherWonk]

WOW! Glossy chart!

I will await reaction by others who know far more about this stuff than me.

[fan_since79]

Wait a minute. Isn't Rene Rivera still a part of this team?

[Angelsjunky]

25 minutes ago, fan_since79 said:

Wait a minute. Isn't Rene Rivera still a part of this team?

The depth chart starts in 2019. Rivera is signed only through 2018.

[Lou]

yeah, dumbass*

 

*with all due respect 

ps I just had some ice cream 

[jsnpritchett]

I'm even more skeptical of the starting pitching than you are, AJ.  I think it's too early to tell on Barria.  He's obviously still super young and has plenty of time to develop, but it seems like his performance this year has been a little bit of smoke-and-mirrors.  I think Shoemaker and Meyer are massive question marks who can't be relied on in any way to be a) healthy, or b) consistently productive when they ARE healthy.   I think Tropeano is pretty much garbage at this point, and Heaney can go from great to below average from start to start. 

[jsnpritchett]

2 minutes ago, Lou said:

ps I just had some ice cream 

So did I.  A combo of Vanilla Malt and Chocolate Cheesecake from Scoops in Highland Park.

[Lou]

5 minutes ago, jsnpritchett said:

So did I.  A combo of Vanilla Malt and Chocolate Cheesecake from Scoops in Highland Park.

banana split at home. 

fs79?

[Docwaukee]

Cool stuff AJ!

[Warfarin]

3 hours ago, Angelsjunky said:

 

Kudos man, this is very nicely done.

I think it's pretty much 100% we are acquiring a catcher in the offseason.  My preference is for Grandal, as he's a FA and the "only" thing he'll cost is money.  He brings LH power and patience, and in truth, is a pretty decent middle-of-the-lineup hitter.  He should be our #1 target beyond all else.

Personally, I'd love to explore a trade for Cozart in the offseason, perhaps to a team in need of a SS.  I like Fletcher at 2B, but he doesn't really hit enough to be a 3B.  I'd give Ward a shot at 3B and see how he pans out.

2019 Lineup:  Calhoun RF, Trout CF, Upton LF, Grandal C, Pujols 1B, Ohtani DH, Simmons SS, Ward 3B, Fletcher 2B

Or something along those lines.

Rotation:  Ohtani (hopefully), Skaggs, Heaney, Barria, Tropeano, maybe Shoemaker.  Canning/Suarez/Pena will be in AAA as depth.  I think Ramirez and Bridwell are gone after this year.

[ettin]

3 hours ago, Angelsjunky said:

Alright, I've been dabbling with this over the last few days, trying to get a sense of the future of the team, complete with minor league options. These charts are by no means authorative - just my first stab at it. Feel free to comment and I'm happy to make adjustments if you convince me. 

The categorizations are, of course, subjective, although the major league players far less so than the prospects.  I included only those prospects who I believe have a better than average chance of becoming at least major league role players (bench/platoon), and/or could be considered "Grade C" or higher. You might take issue with some exclusions (e.g. Torii Hunter Jr, Brennan Lund types), but in some cases I didn't want to over-complicate things and just included the best prospect at a position per level.

I tried to make this visually intuitive, so that darker areas can be understood that the team is all set and doesn't need to make changes. So we look at the lighter areas for ways to improve the team. Then you cross-reference with the prospects, to see what is coming up through the farm. Hopefully it is obvious that the players are listed by years of club control. 

Some comments.

Looking at this chart, I'd say the biggest long-term issues are:

Catcher: The Angels have nothing more than role players on the major league roster (Briceno and Ancia) and only one decent prospect in the pipeline in Jack Kruger, who is no more than a Grade C/C+ type and probably a couple years away. 

Starting Pitching: A couple things stand out. One, there is no true ace - unless Ohtani is both healthy and develops to his full potential, but right now I cannot categorize him as such. Two, while the Angels have four average-to-good starters in Ohtani, Skaggs, Heaney, and Barria, after that it becomes rather mediocre...some potential, but no one has emerged yet. Three, while there are some solid prospects, there aren't any truly elite pitching prospects in the organization.

There are other weak spots, but every other position either has a current good or better starter or someone on the near horizon. So we've got some nice depth here.

 

 

 

 

Really nice AJ I started doing something similar but this is nice and colorful! Well done!

[Inside Pitch]

Thank you for the time and effort, AJ...

[NachoPop]

1 hour ago, Warfarin said:

Kudos man, this is very nicely done.

I think it's pretty much 100% we are acquiring a catcher in the offseason.  My preference is for Grandal, as he's a FA and the "only" thing he'll cost is money.  He brings LH power and patience, and in truth, is a pretty decent middle-of-the-lineup hitter.  He should be our #1 target beyond all else.

Personally, I'd love to explore a trade for Cozart in the offseason, perhaps to a team in need of a SS.  I like Fletcher at 2B, but he doesn't really hit enough to be a 3B.  I'd give Ward a shot at 3B and see how he pans out.

2019 Lineup:  Calhoun RF, Trout CF, Upton LF, Grandal C, Pujols 1B, Ohtani DH, Simmons SS, Ward 3B, Fletcher 2B

Or something along those lines.

Rotation:  Ohtani (hopefully), Skaggs, Heaney, Barria, Tropeano, maybe Shoemaker.  Canning/Suarez/Pena will be in AAA as depth.  I think Ramirez and Bridwell are gone after this year.

 + Meyer (hopefully)

[Warfarin]

4 minutes ago, NachoPop said:

 + Meyer (hopefully)

Meyer is a guy who I think could be an interesting late-inning reliever candidate.  His control isn't great, but he can certainly blow hitters away.  By having him focus on just two pitchers, could see some great results from him as a reliever.

[UndertheHalo]

Great stuff AJ.  I’d switch around some of the ratings on the minor leaguers but no big deal.  Thanks for this. 

[Stradling]

I love it AJ.  Very easy to read and follow.  A really good tool for anyone checking out our prospects.  

[Angelsjunky]

Thanks all. Now that I have the sheet up and running, I'll periodically update it. Already since I started working on it about a week ago there have been promotions.

[Angelsjunky]

2 hours ago, Warfarin said:

Kudos man, this is very nicely done.

I think it's pretty much 100% we are acquiring a catcher in the offseason.  My preference is for Grandal, as he's a FA and the "only" thing he'll cost is money.  He brings LH power and patience, and in truth, is a pretty decent middle-of-the-lineup hitter.  He should be our #1 target beyond all else.

Personally, I'd love to explore a trade for Cozart in the offseason, perhaps to a team in need of a SS.  I like Fletcher at 2B, but he doesn't really hit enough to be a 3B.  I'd give Ward a shot at 3B and see how he pans out.

2019 Lineup:  Calhoun RF, Trout CF, Upton LF, Grandal C, Pujols 1B, Ohtani DH, Simmons SS, Ward 3B, Fletcher 2B

Or something along those lines.

Rotation:  Ohtani (hopefully), Skaggs, Heaney, Barria, Tropeano, maybe Shoemaker.  Canning/Suarez/Pena will be in AAA as depth.  I think Ramirez and Bridwell are gone after this year.

This all sounds about right to me. I agree on most of what you said, but am expecting Eppler goes the budget route at C. Who knows though, I do hope for Grandal.

I also agree on Fletcher and Ward, although prefer Rengifo long-term at 2B and like the idea of Fletcher as super sub. He's a really useful player to have and I'm sure Scioscia and Eppler love him.  I want to see Rengifo and his potentially future .370+ OBP at leadoff.

 

[Angelsjunky]

3 hours ago, jsnpritchett said:

I'm even more skeptical of the starting pitching than you are, AJ.  I think it's too early to tell on Barria.  He's obviously still super young and has plenty of time to develop, but it seems like his performance this year has been a little bit of smoke-and-mirrors.  I think Shoemaker and Meyer are massive question marks who can't be relied on in any way to be a) healthy, or b) consistently productive when they ARE healthy.   I think Tropeano is pretty much garbage at this point, and Heaney can go from great to below average from start to start. 

I pretty much agree on Barria, but still color code him as a #3-4 because while I think he has #4-5 stuff, he's bumped up a bit for grit and pitchability. He might take a step back next year and then two steps forward in 2020. I agree on Shoe, Meyer, and Trope, but don't think Trope is as much "garbage" as he is a solid guy to have to sub in when needed. I hope Meyer is converted to a reliever, with strong closer potential. And yeah, Heaney is somewhat erratic, which is why I have him as a #3-4 rather than the #2 he sometimes looks like.

[Anaheim Ohtanitrouts]

Grandal just hit a 10th inning walkoff, his 2nd dinger of the game. We might need to start a gofundme....