The Official 2024 Draft Thread

[ettin]

4 hours ago, totdprods said:

Wouldn’t that align with taking players in earliest drafts who can reach bigs quickest, and maybe not be the ‘best’ overall pick? That’s why I’m suggesting they probably do the same this year since they still seem to be in compete mode. It maybe being Perry’s last year could further that too.

Or are you saying years prior it’s been win now, and they can take a more relaxed approach now?

No I was just responding to what I perceived your comment to read, that you haven't been impressed with Minasian at the helm, so far. I was just saying that he is likely operating in the win now environment where he would normally draft a certain type of player that he prefers, not what this win now mode is demanding him to pick, over, possibly, a more preferred draft pick. That was all.

[Angel Oracle]

8 hours ago, Inside Pitch said:

That Aussie kid is lighting it up despite pitching in the Pac 12 where offenses have been down.  Not sure what his upside is tools wise, but he seems to have a very "pro" approach at the plate.  Plus anyone that was playing against grown men at 15 is if nothing else somewhat tested.

Bazzana tore it up in Cape Cod this past summer: .375/.456/.581/1.037 over 158 PAs.

Edited April 19 by Angel Oracle

[totdprods]

4 hours ago, ettin said:

No I was just responding to what I perceived your comment to read, that you haven't been impressed with Minasian at the helm, so far. I was just saying that he is likely operating in the win now environment where he would normally draft a certain type of player that he prefers, not what this win now mode is demanding him to pick, over, possibly, a more preferred draft pick. That was all.

I like what he does with the first few picks and usually the 11th round pick since that is a lot where they can spend after going under slot, but it just seems the guys he drafts really drop off a cliff after the first few rounds - and it’s not that I’m expecting there to be a bunch of dark-horse sleeper prospects. Just seems most of those guys struggle to even be warm bodies to fill out the minor league depth chart. Compared to years past, those guys at least would put up average-ish numbers for their leagues, whereas Minasian’s guys after the 4th round or so (again, 11th round not included) seem to have a lot of hitters struggling to put up OPS above .600 or pitchers staying healthy enough to put up sub 5.00 ERAs. 

In the grand scheme, doesn’t really matter - those rounds rarely produce regular MLB product, it’s not to be expected. Just seems that Minasian’s later round picks struggle way more than prior later round picks.

Zero issue with what he does hit on though. 

[Inside Pitch]

6 hours ago, Angel Oracle said:

Bazzana tore it up in Cape Cod this past summer: .375/.456/.581/1.037 over 158 PAs.

And we know the Angels scout the CCL hard. It's one of the few things they are known to focus on.

[Dave Saltzer]

From Baseball America:

 

8. Angels — JJ Wetherholt, 2B, West Virginia

One of the players in our top tier of prospects in the class has to come off the board last and in this version it’s Wetherholt, who has simply been on the field less than anyone else. Wetherholt missed a significant amount of time dealing with a hamstring injury, but he returned to action earlier this month in a limited role as a DH.

The bat has been as advertised. He’s hit or walked in all 14 games this season and is slashing .326/.492/.535 with bat-to-ball ability and zone control skills that stack up with the elite hitters in these areas like Bazzana and Kurtz. If a team before this spot thinks Wetherholt is the best pure hitter in the class still—which is a perfectly reasonable claim—it’s possible a hamstring injury won’t be enough for them to pass him up. 

If Wetherholt does make it here, he seems to fit the advanced college hitting profile the Angels have prioritized in recent drafts. He also hits the ball harder than the 6-foot-4 first baseman they drafted in the first round last year.

[Dave Saltzer]

From: https://www.baseballprospectjournal.com/2024-mlb-draft-mock-draft-2-0/

8. Angels: JJ Wetherholt, 2B, West Virginia

The Angels prefer taking college players who can move through the minor leagues quickly. Wetherholt has missed some time this year with a hamstring injury. When healthy, Wetherholt is an extremely productive player and arguably the best prospect in this year’s class. He has a well-rounded skill set, tremendous feel at the plate and potential.

 

 

[samwum]

On 4/18/2024 at 9:42 AM, ettin said:

I think we should temper this opinion against the likely fact that Perry has been  told to try and win now, which would skew what might be a normal, preferred strategy from Minasian. If that is his mandate it will force him to make "uncharacteristic" decisions in support of that.

Minasian should be held accountable for his draft strategy and draft picks until other speculation is shown to have any basis. The GM turns the draft picks in, not the owner. 

I think you're just happy to use the Arte excuse rather than confronting the very real possibility the Angels may have suffered from poor drafting by a bad GM hire. 

[Blarg]

2 hours ago, samwum said:

Minasian should be held accountable for his draft strategy and draft picks until other speculation is shown to have any basis. The GM turns the draft picks in, not the owner. 

I think you're just happy to use the Arte excuse rather than confronting the very real possibility the Angels may have suffered from poor drafting by a bad GM hire. 

What makes you think Minasians decisions are not "held accountable"? 

You are like that guy that owns a lowered 2003 Honda Accord with blacked out windows, wide tires, and a loud muffler but under the hood is the stock 4 cylinder coupled to an automatic transmission. You make a lot of noise. 

[Stradling]

On 4/21/2024 at 5:05 PM, samwum said:

I think I'm becoming the de-facto president of the Minasian hate party on here so I'd like to refrain from continuing to post too much more on the topic, but things really are getting worse as long as he continues to be here. 

 

5 hours ago, samwum said:

Minasian should be held accountable for his draft strategy and draft picks until other speculation is shown to have any basis. The GM turns the draft picks in, not the owner. 

I think you're just happy to use the Arte excuse rather than confronting the very real possibility the Angels may have suffered from poor drafting by a bad GM hire. 

 

[Vlad27Trout27]

Then it is a good thing that the first top 8 picks fit the mold! They all have high potential and upside! 

It's not like Perry has had bad picks. 

2021 He selected Bachman, which was an un-slot pick and at that time he two plus pitches and the best change with a big upside. He's just been hurt. Heck Leiter was considered the best Pitching prospect in that darft, and he looks like a bust. 

2022 was Neto, who was considered the best college bat at that time. I would say it still a pretty solid pick and Neto is could reach that ceiling. 

Now the question is, are these guys getting rushed to quickly? I would say yes, and it I thinks it one of the thing that may need to be looked at or changed 

[ettin]

17 hours ago, samwum said:

Minasian should be held accountable for his draft strategy and draft picks until other speculation is shown to have any basis. The GM turns the draft picks in, not the owner. 

I think you're just happy to use the Arte excuse rather than confronting the very real possibility the Angels may have suffered from poor drafting by a bad GM hire. 

Congratulations you have won the random-online attacker of the month!

You read WAY too much into what I said.

[Tank]

i want perry to be like kevin costner's character in Draft Day.

[T.G.]

24 minutes ago, Tank said:

i want perry to be like Denzel washington’s character in Training Day.

 

[Tank]

1 hour ago, T.G. said:

hours ago, Tank said:

i want perry to be like Denzel washington’s character in Training Day.

[Blarg]

3 hours ago, T.G. said:

i want perry to be like Denzel washington’s character in Training Day.

Get gunned down by a bunch of gang members in South Central?

Harsh. 

[Inside Pitch]

32 minutes ago, Blarg said:

Get gunned down by a bunch of RUSSIAN gang members in South Central?

Harsh. 

First the Armenian genocide and now this.  Living in Glendale has really turned Tank (TG), into a meanie.

[Angel Oracle]

Since the Halos do a lot of scouting the Cape Cod League, Wetherholt this past summer albeit in just 32 PAs:

.321/.406/.571/.977

He was healthy his first 2 seasons at WVa.

Also has a much needed lefty bat.

Edited April 24 by Angel Oracle

[T.G.]

5 hours ago, Blarg said:

Get gunned down by a bunch of gang members in South Central?

Harsh. 

Well, not that part

[T.G.]

4 hours ago, Inside Pitch said:

First the Armenian genocide and now this.  Living in Glendale has really turned Tank (TG), into a meanie.

Tank (TG)?

[Inside Pitch]

2 hours ago, T.G. said:

Tank (TG)?

You took creative liberties with his quote!  So, wanted to give you both credit.

[Tank]

56 minutes ago, Inside Pitch said:

You took creative liberties with his quote!  So, wanted to give you both credit.

i'm retiring in six weeks. i have the right to be a little extra cranky here and there.

[Junkballer]

12 hours ago, T.G. said:

 

[Dave Saltzer]

From:https://www.prospectslive.com/prospects-live/2024/4/23/2024-mlb-mock-draft-20

 

8. LOS ANGELES ANGELS: INF JJ WETHERHOLT

 

HT: 5’10 WT: 190 B/T: L/R

PICK VALUE: $6,502,800

The narrative surrounding the Angels in recent years? Find prospects that you can accelerate to the majors. The Angels have two options at their disposal in this scenario, as Chase Burns and JJ Wetherholt are both targets to race through the minors. 

 

We'll stick with Wetherholt here, as his bat may be the best in this class. It's a well-rounded offensive profile with an explosive swing that's direct to the baseball and power that plays to both sides of the park. There's injury concern here, as he's been plagued by hamstring issues in the past calendar year, but there's more risk with an arm and the Angels may opt for the safer option. It'll feel like a steal,

 

They have Burns going later than us. too.

[Chitown27Fan]

I kind of want Burns more then Wetherholt for to simple fact that in my opinion good pitching is harder to come by and this team needs some good pitching outside of Dana what do we have that folks dont need to look real hard at to see any potential for more then a #4 in the majors. Unless the thought is JJ could be the next Trout/Harper type. Pitching costs more then hitting more times then not when your trying to aquire it. 

[Angel Oracle]

Burns has K’d 127 in 69 innings so far in 2024, with a 6/1 Ks/BBs ratio, and allowed just 44 hits.

Only issue I see so far is 12 HRs allowed.

Are ACC parks known for being HR friendly?

Guessing that Bazzana will be long gone by the 8th pick?

While some may see Wetherholt as somewhat undersized at 5-10, consider not just the cheater Altuve but also Joe Morgan who was 5-7.

 

Edited Tuesday at 04:55 PM by Angel Oracle