The Official 2019 Minor League Statline and Prospect Discussion Thread

[ScottT]

57 minutes ago, Angelsjunky said:

I am not happy with how the Angels have handled Cowart. To be a pitcher I think he would need to start over in at least single A and work his way up. But that would take at least a couple years. At this point, age 27, his path to a major league career is probably as a bench infielder with the hopes that someone gets hurt and he gets a chance to start. 

At this point he might want to consider Japan.

That's a good point.  Pitching at AAA when you haven't....    that's rough

[eaterfan]

1 hour ago, ScottT said:

 

I've heard recently from more than one person .... after a couple minutes you don't know the net is there.  lol.  How loaded are those people?

Behind home plate....  No brainer.

Above the dugouts... getting debatable

Down the lines....  getting silly

Protecting what is the club level at Angel Stadium and lodge level at Dodger Stadium (where the got hit last year and eventually died).....   ridiculous.

Yeah, from that video I can't even tell what sport they're playing. Hockey? Football? Maybe it's a marching band out their. Why anyone would want to sit behind home plate with that wall blocking the view I'll never know.

[ScottT]

Oh. You missed the point. Cute. 

[Stradling]

1 hour ago, ScottT said:

 

I've heard recently from more than one person .... after a couple minutes you don't know the net is there.  lol.  How loaded are those people?

Behind home plate....  No brainer.

Above the dugouts... getting debatable

Down the lines....  getting silly

Protecting what is the club level at Angel Stadium and lodge level at Dodger Stadium (where the fan got hit last year and eventually died).....   ridiculous.

You and I agree on a lot of things.  This isn’t one of them.  I am not saying add higher netting to protect club levels or any of that.  But I would have zero problem with them adding netting further down the lines.  I know they did it to the end of the dugouts, but I would have zero issue if they went further into the outfield.  Doesn’t have to be all the way too the foul pole, but further than they currently are is fine with me.

[ScottT]

3 minutes ago, Stradling said:

You and I agree on a lot of things.  This isn’t one of them.  I am not saying add higher netting to protect club levels or any of that.  But I would have zero problem with them adding netting further down the lines.  I know they did it to the end of the dugouts, but I would have zero issue if they went further into the outfield.  Doesn’t have to be all the way too the foul pole, but further than they currently are is fine with me.

I didnt like the dugout netting, but I can see that.  I  got buzzed last year at spring training. For the last time. Because they put nets up everywhere not because I refused to dit there.

Where do you stop, though? Serious injuries beyond the dugouts have to be incredibly rare. 

I think every incident gets great attention now... and Joe blow gets the idea that it is more dangerous than it is. Its sensationalized. Everything is on camera. On social media.  Its overblown. People get injured every day doing things that should be safe... minding their own business. 

[ScottT]

My biggest beef with the most recent reaction is the take that you dont notice the net after a few minutes.

If you are sitting 45 rows back I guess.

[Troll Daddy]

 

[John Smith]

Bill Mitchell‏ @billazbbphotog 9m9 minutes ago

More

Jose Suarez was pulled from his start for Salt Lake after just a few warm-up pitches. Trainer, manager and pitching coach all went to the mound and he was out before the game started. #Angels

[tdawg87]

In before

[Chuck]

17 minutes ago, tdawg87 said:

In before

Too much pregame queso & frijoles?

[John Smith]

1. Maria Torres‏Verified account @maria_torres3 16m16 minutes ago

   More

   #Angels Jose Suarez was not scratched from his start at triple-A Salt Lake because of injury. General manager Billy Eppler said he could not say any more “at this time.”

    
2.  

   Maria Torres‏Verified account @maria_torres3 2m2 minutes ago

   More

   Don’t infer anything from my haphazard quotation mark placement. Twitter thumbs were plodding

[tdawg87]

Trrrrraaaaaaaaddddeessssssss

[Second Base]

Aaaaaaaaaahhhhhh!!!!

[Angel Oracle]

What else besides injury would force people to come to the mound?????

[Chuck]

8 hours ago, Angel Oracle said:

What else besides injury would force people to come to the mound?????

A promotion to the big league club because there is an immediate need.

[Chuck]

It would be nice if Mobile, Alabamba had some decent weather so our top prospect can actually play some ball games.

[Second Base]

Just now, Chuckster70 said:

It would be nice if Mobile, Alabamba had some decent weather so our top prospect can actually play some ball games.

It's their last year in Mobile. They're headed to Bama next year. One heck of a launch/rebrand for the team too.

[Angel Oracle]

1 hour ago, Second Base said:

It's their last year in Mobile. They're headed to Bama next year. One heck of a launch/rebrand for the team too.

Gulf Coast weather is never a good thing for baseball.

[Second Base]

"Will Wilson could probably step into the majors and hit .280 right now."

- Just one take I thought I'd share.  Others included his two strike approach (loses the leg kick) and comps with Derek Jeter's swing. 

[wopphil]

16 minutes ago, Second Base said:

"Will Wilson could probably step into the majors and hit .280 right now."

- Just one take I thought I'd share.  Others included his two strike approach (loses the leg kick) and comps with Derek Jeter's swing. 

I am pretty sure those exact words were said about Thaiss as well. And probably Cron.

[Docwaukee]

22 minutes ago, wopphil said:

I am pretty sure those exact words were said about Thaiss as well. And probably Cron.

you just depressed me a bit.  

I went back and looked.  There isn't a ton of success from 'advanced' college guys from the mid first round over the last 10 years or so.  

[Second Base]

50 minutes ago, wopphil said:

I am pretty sure those exact words were said about Thaiss as well. And probably Cron.

Cron and Thaiss is an interesting case study.  Both catchers in college, drafted as 1B. 

If I'm guessing, yeah, someone might've said that about Cron.  I mean he hit over .400 with power for two years in a row at Utah before being drafted, the last of which he has more BB than K's.  That's still a great mystery where that plate discipline went.  I suppose we all should've seen the learning curve coming, I mean it's Utah, higher elevation and Cron's BABIP in college was over .400.  No way that's sustainable.  But I guess if I'm being fair, Cron was major league ready three years after being drafted and has gone on to be a productive starting 1B in the major leagues, just like we all thought when he was picked.  It just took longer than expected, though I suppose the Angels have no one to blame but themselves on that one.  They forced him to platoon and ride the Salt Lake to Anaheim express for FOUR years.  It's no coincidence that as soon as he left the Angels he turned into a 30 HR hitter.  

Sometimes major league front offices and managers just need to get out of their own way and play a guy to find out if he's got what it takes.  The Angels never gave him that shot. 

As for Matt Thaiss, I don't think anyone was saying that.  His numbers for Virginia were good, but because he was being moved away from catcher, the big question was if he'd hit enough to warrant being a major league first baseman like the Angels were exploring.  Folks were split on that outcome.  It was either a wasted pick or a savvy pick depending on who you asked.  But the motivation behind the two picks was different.  Cron was looked at as a quick rising franchise cornerstone, which he never became (again, probably not his fault).   Thaiss though, he was an over-draft who signed for an under-slot bonus so that the Angels could pick someone with higher upside in the second and third rounds.  This is Matt's third year since being drafted, so he appears to be on the same timeline as Cron was.  Thaiss has shown much better plate discipline than Cron ever did, but not the power, same contact ability though.  I think the difference here is that Cron's power was enough to keep him at 1b long term, whereas Thaiss has shown the athleticism to be able to shift across the diamond to third base. 

Cron has ended up being what I'd consider a .260/.320 30 HR hitting 1B.  Not an all-star or anything, but good enough to carve out a starting role.  Thaiss will end up being more of a .270/.340 15 HR hitting 1B/3B.  Probably not enough to carve out a permanent role at either position, but enough to carve out a role as a major leaguer.  Production wise, he's probably similar to Tommy La Stella (before this year) but with more power.   

Now how this directs our view of Wilson, I can't answer.  I think if you were to take a consensus, we'd probably all agree that Wilson has as much, if not more power than Thaiss, and likely similar contact ability and plate discipline.  The difference here would be that Wilson will either end up being an average shortstop or a very good defensive second baseman.  Those numbers at SS/2B are solid.  At 1B/3B, understandably, not so much. 

Edited June 8, 2019 by Second Base

[Docwaukee]

with all due respect Scotty, Matt Thaiss has been a major disappointment so far in my opinion.  

[Vlad27Trout27]

49 minutes ago, Dochalo said:

with all due respect Scotty, Matt Thaiss has been a major disappointment so far in my opinion.  

^

[Angelsjunky]

One thing I've heard mentioned about Wilson is that he's on the younger side of a college player: he turns 21 on July 21, which means this year is his age 20 season. He's about a year younger than most college draftees, which might be a positive thing when you consider there's strong correlation between eventual upside and age/level.