cgoldangel

I grew up in Bakersfield and the Dodgers had their single A team there. I grew up watching the Angels because of my dad and all my friends were Dodgers fans. In the 70s and early 80s, the Dodgers were good and the Angels not so much. My friends gave me a lot of grief about the Angels so I grew up hating the Dodgers!! And still have two favorite teams, the Angels and whoever the Dodgers are playing😂.

I grew up in Bakersfield and the Dodgers had their single A team there. I grew up watching the Angels because of my dad and all my friends were Dodgers fans. In the 70s and early 80s, the Dodgers were good and the Angels not so much. My friends gave me a lot of grief about the Angels so I grew up hating the Dodgers!! And still have two favorite teams, the Angels and whoever the Dodgers are playing😂.

It’s not my favorite rule but if the Angels could actually be better playing extra inning games it would make me feel better about the rule😂

By Jonathan Northrop, AngelsWin.com Senior Writer
Introduction: It Can't Be Worse
While we just tipped over into the second half of January, which means we're still several weeks away from pitchers and catchers reporting (February 14) and two and a half months from Opening Day (March 30), it is still the new year, and it seems that the Angels are--barring a surprise move--mostly done in assembling their 2023 team.
How does the team look? What can we expect and reasonably hope for? One thing this post will not be is a Debby Downer rant about worst-case scenarios and the poor moves of past and present management. I will try to be as objective as possible, but err towards the side of how good the team can reasonably be, if more things go right than wrong.
Injuries happen. Players have bad years. But players also have good years, and it is unusual that a team suffers the almost uncanny combination of bad luck and injury that the 2022 team experienced, essentialized in their 14-game losing streak. Chances are, no matter how bad it gets in 2023, it won't get that bad. And GM Perry Minasian has put a lot of work--and fair amount of money--into preventing a repeat of that debacle.
 
1. The Angels vs. the World Champions
What has Minasian done this offseason? Well, he's lifted the floor on the team substantially. The Angels poor performance in 2022 can be visually expressed like so:


Now it might not be fair to compare the Angels to the World Champions, but on the other hand, if you're trying to build a contender, one important tactic is to look at successful teams and, most importantly, how they succeeded and, if possible, trying to emulate that. 
What are you looking at? The two charts compare the Angels and Astros, first in hitting as represented through wRC+, secondly in pitching as represented by FIP. The striking difference between the two teams in both charts is perhaps best characterized not by the best players, but by the worst - namely, the number of poor performers on the Angels, and the visual "real estate" they take up on the charts.
Perhaps the most glaring problem the Angels had is the huge number of plate appearances given to bad hitters: Their first four hitters by plate appearance were all plus performers, but the next seven were negative; and after the first four, only one out of the next seventeen was average or above.
Compare that to the Astros: six out of their first seven were average or above, and seven out of their first ten. The mass of below average performers on the ride side of the first graph make up a fraction of the Angels' comparable section.
We see a similar phenomena with the pitchers, although in some ways it is even more striking in that the Astros only had two pitchers with below average FIP that were given substantial playing time, and one of them--Jose Urquidy--still managed about a league average ERA of 3.94.
Meaning, the Astros weren't sending (almost) any poor pitchers to the mound, while the Angels were shuffling through a bunch of them.
If you're the GM of a baseball team, you look at ways to improve controllable outcomes, of which injuries are (for the most part) not. Meaning, Minasian has very little say in whether or not Anthony Rendon gets hurt or how Mike Trout ages, or even whether Taylor Ward decides to crash into a wall. But what he does have some control over, is how the roster is configured.
So Minasian's big task this offseason was to turn as much of the "purple" into "green." There are specific needs to be addressed, but in its most simply--yet still comprehensive form--that's what was required.
The big question, of course, is how successful was he? In mid January, we cannot know. We might now come May, but even then it might not be until about mid-season that we have a sense of whether the "Minasian Plan" (Or Minasian Gambit?) worked. What did he do?
2. Minasian's Moves
First, let's talk about what he did not do: He didn't sign any big free agents or make any huge trades. Everything he did was minor to moderate, in terms of resources. The total result was the equivalent of signing a big free agent and some scraps, but no single move did any of the following:
Give a player $20M+ per year* Sign a player for more than three years Give up any top 10 (or even top 20) prospects I asterisked the first, because he did give Ohtani a one-year deal worth $30M. Ohtani was due for a big arbitration pay day that would probably have earned him a bit less, but we can consider this as a bit of a good-will deed. 
What did Minasian do? Well, here's a list:
Signed Shohei Ohtani for 1/$30M Signed SP Tyler Anderson for 3/$39M Traded Janson Junk, Elvis Peguero, and Adam Seminaris to the Brewers for OF Hunter Renfroe Signed IF Brandon Drury for 2/$17M Traded Alejandro Hidalgo to the Twins for IF Gio Urshela Signed RP Carlos Estevez for 2/$13.5M Signed OF Brett Phillips for 1/$1.2M Plus a bunch of minor league acquisitions As you can see, other than Ohtani, there is not a true star in sight. What the above list includes are a handful of quality, major league regulars and solid bench/platoon players.
The Angels Opening Day 26-man payroll is estimated at $188M, $7M higher than last year; similarly, the CB Tax 40-man payroll is $207M, $8M higher than 2022.
3. 2022 vs. 2023: What Will Be Different?
A lot remains the same, but some significant factors have changed. Essentially what has happened is:
The Angels have swapped out Brandon Marsh and Jo Adell (608 PA, 0.7 WAR) for Hunter Renfroe (522 PA, 2.5 WAR) Swapped Andrew Velazquez, Matt Duffy, Tyler Wade, Jack Mayfield, Michael Stefanic, Jose Rojas, Jonathan Villar, Phil Gosselin and David MacKinnon (1099 PA, -3.3 WAR) for Gio Urshela and Brandon Drury (1119 PA, 5.4 WAR) Tyler Anderson (178.2 IP, 4.0 WAR in 2022) has replaced Noah Syndergaard/Michael Lorenzen (177.2 IP, 2.2 WAR). Carlos Estevez (57 IP, 0.4 WAR) is replacing a variety of pitchers, including half a year of Raisel Iglesias (35.2 IP, 0.7 WAR) Replaced Magneuris Sierra, Juan Lagares, and Mickey Moniak (220 PA, -0.9 WAR) with Brett Phillips (225 PA, 0.1 WAR) OK, before you protest, note that I am not saying that we can simply take last year's numbers and switch them out like that. But I am saying that this is essentially what is happening in terms of playing time, without even looking at injuries; I included some stats to give. For instance, we don't know how much players like Rendon, Trout, Ward, and Fletcher will play in 2023, or at what level. Catcher is also a big question mark: which version of Max Stassi will show up, and who will share catching duties with him?
But....if you do swap out those players, you get a +12.8 WAR swing, about two-thirds of which (+8.7 WAR) is coming from the infield. 
What does a +12.8 WAR swing look like for the Angels? Well, if we just take the raw numbers, that adds about 13 wins and the Angels go from 73-89 to 86-76.
Again, it isn't so simple as that - and things always turn out differently than planned. But that is still the basic idea behind these moves: replace sub-par performance with--at least--solid, league average performance.
Minasian's moves this offseason could pay huge dividends, especially in the infield, where the Angels gave about two full season's worth of playing time to -3.3 WAR performance, most of which was due to poor hitting. Even if the Angels can replace that -3.3 WAR with slightly above replacement level play, they add four or more wins.
4. Two (or Three) Factors for Success in 2023
The Angels 2023 season is mostly banking on two factors:
One, the above mentioned changes work out mostly as hoped. They don't have to work out completely, but just for the most part. 
Two, better health - and not just Trout and Rendon, but Fletcher, Ward, Canning, Rodriguez, etc. Last year the Angels got only 166 games from their two highest paid players, Trout and Rendon. In 2021, it was 94 games - so if we want to find a silver lining, at least we're trending in the right direction. But they really need more from these two, and while the farm system is on a positive trajectory, there simply isn't the offensive talent waiting in the wings to make up the difference.
I would add a third that is less necessary but could swing the team significantly:
Three, positive minor league developments, namely players graduating and performing in the majors. This could include better health and performance from guys like Canning and Rodriguez, a breakout performance from Logan O'Hoppe, some of the plethora of pitching prospects in the high minors graduating and performing well. Meaning, something, someone...anything!
Summing Up
The Angels team has a lot of talent. While it may be unlikely given recent track records, there's a scenario in which the very similar Renfroe (124 wRC+, 29 HR) and Drury (123 wRC+, 28 HR) aren't, even repeating last year's performances, among the top four or five hitters on the team. It requires Trout and Rendon to be healthy, Ohtani to stay healthy, and Ward to at least repeat something similar to last year's performance (137 wRC+). Add in a potential bounce back from Jared Walsh, and the Angels could have a lineup that features seven players hitting 20+ HR, with 120 wRC+ or better...and that isn't even considering continued improvement from Luis Rengifo (103 wRC+, 17 HR), a bounce-back from Stassi or breakout from O'Hoppe.
The rotation looks, at the very least, quite solid, with the potential to be very good. There are a wide range of outcomes for the bullpen, so it bears watching. But the Angels have a lot of minor league arms to draw from, as well as (hopefully) a healthy Chris Rodriguez and Griffin Canning.
There are no certainties in major league baseball (or life), but we can at least look at the Angels and say that this team has a chance to be very good - and maybe even better. But the risk is there; they're as likely to win 80 games as they are 90 but, I would say, more likely to win 95 than 75. The talent is there.
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I think there were a few Angels last year that really struggled with whatever the hitting instructors were teaching. Walsh, Stassi, Marsh, Adell and others seemed to have a really weird approach where they were taking fastballs over the plate (even on two strike counts) and swinging at off speed pitches that were not close to the plate. I am hopeful the new hitting coaches in Anaheim and at SLC can help Adell improve his approach.  Marsh looked better in just a short time with the Phillies although still looked lost part of the time.  Give Adell the time to make some adjustments with hopefully a better instructor(s) and see if he can become a better player for next year.   Not sure we can get much for him now.

I think there were a few Angels last year that really struggled with whatever the hitting instructors were teaching. Walsh, Stassi, Marsh, Adell and others seemed to have a really weird approach where they were taking fastballs over the plate (even on two strike counts) and swinging at off speed pitches that were not close to the plate. I am hopeful the new hitting coaches in Anaheim and at SLC can help Adell improve his approach.  Marsh looked better in just a short time with the Phillies although still looked lost part of the time.  Give Adell the time to make some adjustments with hopefully a better instructor(s) and see if he can become a better player for next year.   Not sure we can get much for him now.

I think Walsh will benefit the most because of his tendency to pull the ball and the sheer number of times he was shifted. Ohtani as well. My sleeper is Stassi because he hits the ball up the middle to the shortstop side of the bag a lot which most of the time will be hits this year.

I think there were a few Angels last year that really struggled with whatever the hitting instructors were teaching. Walsh, Stassi, Marsh, Adell and others seemed to have a really weird approach where they were taking fastballs over the plate (even on two strike counts) and swinging at off speed pitches that were not close to the plate. I am hopeful the new hitting coaches in Anaheim and at SLC can help Adell improve his approach.  Marsh looked better in just a short time with the Phillies although still looked lost part of the time.  Give Adell the time to make some adjustments with hopefully a better instructor(s) and see if he can become a better player for next year.   Not sure we can get much for him now.

One thing that is positive from last year is that we had some really good improvement from players in the minors not just for the year but also mid year improvement. This seems to show our player development has improved and if we see a similar improvement this year then we know Minasian is on the right track. Really interested in seeing if Jackson and Adams can make that kind of improvement this year. It also helps to have more talent in the system through the draft.

Regarding Walsh and the TOS, I work as a PT and anytime you are dealing with neurological symptoms, those symptoms are always different with each person. If the symptoms get bad enough it would absolutely be an issue swinging a bat. We just don’t know how bad the symptoms were for Walsh. It is all speculation on our parts and I am willing to take his word on it.

Regarding Walsh and the TOS, I work as a PT and anytime you are dealing with neurological symptoms, those symptoms are always different with each person. If the symptoms get bad enough it would absolutely be an issue swinging a bat. We just don’t know how bad the symptoms were for Walsh. It is all speculation on our parts and I am willing to take his word on it.

Regarding Walsh and the TOS, I work as a PT and anytime you are dealing with neurological symptoms, those symptoms are always different with each person. If the symptoms get bad enough it would absolutely be an issue swinging a bat. We just don’t know how bad the symptoms were for Walsh. It is all speculation on our parts and I am willing to take his word on it.

Ray Finkle?

By Taylor Blake Ward, AngelsWin.com Columnist
GENERAL THOUGHTS
Perspective only comes with a full view. I write this as a caveat, as most will make an initial knee-jerk reaction to any club's first-round selection and make that the brash opinion of the entire draft for the club as it has the most value and is the one with the most accessible perceptions as to the player taken. For example, speaking to a Texas Rangers fanatic on Sunday night, he was distraught that Texas spent their first-round pick on Kumar Rocker much earlier than anticipated he would go and could not surrender the thought of losing value with the pick, and later altered his opinion when the team took Brock Porter in the fourth round. It's easy to make a reaction, but a full view can give you proper perception to how any given team did with their draft on paper.
In the case of the Angels, their first-round selection gives them upside at a premium position. With position players suddenly being the lack of depth of the organization, the Angels went against what the industry felt would be one of the first landing spots for a pitcher and selected Zach Neto, the second-best college shortstop in the nation behind only Brooks Lee. With a firm belief he will stay at shortstop, a challenging position to fill organizationally that has long-lasting effects, there is an opportunity for not only a premium position player but also one that has everyday upside due to his hit and power balance.
As the Angels went into day two and three of the draft, there was some repetition to what they did in 2021, altering from taking 20 pitchers in 20 picks to taking seven college power hitters with their final 16 selections.
"Things just fell that way," said Tim McIlvaine, Angels Amateur Scouting Director, following day three of the draft. "We talked about a lot of different types of players on day one, and then day two as well, and then it gets tough to sign some of the high school kids. They end up going down the college road. We talked to a lot of high school kids for day three as well. Ended up taking one with our first pick (of the third day). It's kind of how it shakes out. You go down all the avenues you can, you talk to all the players you can, you try and get as much information on them as you can, then you try and make the best decision."
As a general proviso among the industry, if two or three players make it to the big leagues with some form of Major League success (three-or-more years of average value), you can call the draft a success. In this scenario and with last year included, if two pitchers from the 20 taken in 2021, and one of the power hitters taken in 2022, have moderate success at the Major League level in the coming years, you can call these drafts successful. As opposed to altering options across 20 rounds, the Angels have set themselves up well to have hopes of one of their power bats finding success and being successful in the draft room for 2022. Of course, more could find success and make it even more beneficial to the club. The same can be said of the pitchers taken, hoping that one or more will find a relief role or be even more successful finding a true rotation option which is near as rare as finding an everyday shortstop. Notably, four of the Angels draft picks were among the top nine in college baseball in 2022 in both OPS and SLG% (Zach Neto, Sonny DiChiara, Matt Coutney, Luke Franzoni).
"It's something we certainly look at," McIlvaine said. "We looked at a lot of different avenues of players. We looked at some guys that are huge speed guys, we looked at some that are big hit guys that didn't have a ton of power and ended up being able to take guys with a lot of power. It's something in our system that we wanted to improve a little bit and I think a lot of these guys are gonna help do that. We got some big boys with some big power that like to hit homers. Hopefully, it gets into the system and translates for us, but you know, it's something we want. OPS has been shown to be a good determining factor of moving forward, what guys are gonna be able to do. I wouldn't say it's just what we were targeting or what we were looking for. It kind of fell that way but we're excited to have it. Power is fun to watch. I think there's going to be some fun batting practice at a few of the affiliates this year. I can't wait to go see it."
Every year the question will always arise: will the [insert team] sign all of their draft picks? Just as a generality, there are usually one or two total players taken in the first two days of the draft, combined, that do not sign, so it's fair to just believe anyone taken in rounds 1-10 will sign with ease. Day three is where the questions will arise, and once again as a generality, high schoolers, college juniors, and JUCO players will be the ones with the biggest question mark attached to their name. In the case of the Angels, there was one high schooler taken on the third day (though we will touch on that later and the likelihood he will sign); with four juniors in Jared Southard (a re-draft for the Angels), Bryce Osmond (the biggest question mark due to his day two opportunities), Sammy Natera Jr., and Max Gieg; and two JC players in Tucker Flint and Sabin Cabellos. Any questions about signability with this group will not come with answers until the end of the signing period, though as a reminder, most will sign and have already spoken to the club about what is expected for their signing bonus and future with the organization.
"Some of these kids are in great situations with where they are," said McIlvaine. "Some of them have expressed to us that they're ready to get started with their careers even though they have other opportunities still. I'm sure there's other colleges or schools - other opportunities that will be tugging on them, but a lot of these kids are ready and wanna get going. It's part of what we try and talk to them about before the draft. Make sure pro ball is the avenue they're looking to go down at this point. With that you take a risk every once in awhile that a kid is ready to go, and this is what they want to do, and you put that opportunity in front of them and if they're ready to go now then we're happy to make that a reality."
I don't give out grades for drafts as it takes at minimum four to five years to really see how successful a draft was when players are reaching their Major League potential, and another four or five years beyond that to see how productive each pick has become. On paper, I like what the Angels did. They addressed organizational needs, though I would have liked to have seen more outfielders taken but sticking to the best player available with each pick, there is a lot to like in the upside of this class for the Angels.
PICK ANALYSIS
1st Round: Zach Neto, SS, Campbell
- I think everyone and their brother expected the Angels to select a pitcher in the first round, but it was nice to see them pivot to a position player with some premium position value. Zach Neto is two-way player in the traditional sense (non-Ohtani version) of being solid at the plate and in the field. Neto is a solid hitter who has a wood-bat track record - hitting for average and power in the Cape Cod League - who has plenty of power potential at the plate. His setup and load are quite unorthodox as he starts with a big inwards leg kick while his hands move all around but it doesn't keep him from getting direct to his separation and in a good position to cover the zone with strength - not dissimilar to Bo Bichette or Javy Baez though I wouldn't compare him to either as he doesn't have the immense bat wrap of Bichette or elite bat speed of Baez. Though unorthodox, Neto syncs everything together and is able to be a rhythmic hitter who utilizes his hand-eye coordination and above-average bat speed to drive the ball with authority and with his natural loft that bat-speed and raw power should be able to produce some easy double-digit home run production. With the load being complex, there may be some offensive inconsistencies and streakiness that are timing based for Neto, which shouldn't deter from the overall full-season offensive production. He's an aggressive baserunner who has average speed and pending the Angels approach to stealing could be an easy double-digit stolen base threat.
Possibly the most important part of Neto's game, and in particular to the Angels, is the belief he can stay at shortstop long-term. I've mentioned it many times over but finding an everyday shortstop - i.e., one who can hit and play solid defense at the position - is hard to come by and even looking at each Major League club in 2022, only about two-thirds of the league have a player of this caliber (same can be said about catcher). Neto's primary value will be in staying at the premium position of shortstop. He's a solid athlete who has soft hands and makes the transfer with ease. He has more than enough arm strength for the position - he's pitched in the past and been up to 93 on the mound though the Angels will not try to utilize him in a two-way role - but the use of that arm will draw questions as he has shown tendencies to try and throw runners out by a mile whether the runner is close or far and will lose some accuracy, which may lead to having to tone down some of his throwing decisions. Neto is light footed with good-but-not-great lateral movement, which could be the only hinderance to his long-term ability at the position. He's shown versatility playing all over the dirt, but there's little question to him staying on the left side of the diamond, and a strong enough chance to stay at shortstop for a lengthy period of time.
Comments from Tim McIlvaine: "First of all, he's athletic. He moves really well. He's got great body control. He goes well laterally, in, out, to his left, to his right. Then when you get to the box, he's got a nice big swing. He's got big bat speed and he'll show you surprising power for his size. He can really get into the ball. What we really like too is how well he knows the strike zone. He doesn't get himself out. He doesn't chase. He makes pitchers throw pitches in the zone and then he hits them hard. There's a lot to like with him. We really hang our head on the athleticism up-the-middle. That was a big focus for us."
Zach Neto 2022 college stats: 256 PA, .407/.514/.769, 65 R, 50 RBI, 15 HR, 19 SB
 
3rd Round: Ben Joyce, RHP, Tennessee
No arm in the 2022 draft class had as much attraction or as much anxiety as Ben Joyce. A true unicorn, Joyce is the owner of the third hardest pitch ever thrown in baseball's metrically recorded history at 105.5 miles-per-hour, only topped by Aroldis Chapman. With the only challengers to his premier velocity being Chapman and Jordan Hicks, Joyce saw his average fastball sit at 101 miles-per-hour and peak at over 105 multiple times, which again is only challenged in metric history by Chapman and Hicks who have reached the feat a combined 10 times (Chapman, 8; Hicks, 2). A transfer from Walters State, Joyce did not pitch in 2021 after having Tommy John surgery in October of 2020, and returned with fire in 2022, hitting 103 in his second outing which sparked attention from Rob Friedman (a.k.a. Pitching Ninja) which led to attention from the masses. Joyce will use his fastball over three-quarters of the time and can disappear on hitters not only with its velocity but it's angle, coming in from a lower three-quarter arm slot with some inversion to his arm action. It has minimal movement which can make it easier to square up, and also among the reasons he was expected to go in the third or fourth round as opposed to first or second. As much of a rarity it is to have Joyce's velocity, there is some alternate weapons in his arsenal. Grades on his slider will range from "meh" to "plus" pending who you ask, but it is a pitch separated by some 15 miles-per-hour to his fastball and sweeps through the zone. The knock here is that Joyce has little command for the pitch, and it is predictable with advanced hitters who aren't automatically setup for the fastball. There is a changeup with some progressive signs, but it is a distant third pitch at the moment. His frame may indicate a starter profile, and the Angels haven't ruled out using him as a starter in development somewhere down the road (not this year), but his limited health track record, violent velocity, and irregularity to sync up his body should keep him in the bullpen. I believe that if the Angels were in the playoff race, he could be an arm you throw out at any given time during the 2022 campaign as a velocity-only weapon that Major Leaguers haven't seen, but with the Angels timeline and current state this year, he should be destined for development with a potential shutdown for 2022. In recap, you can't just find velocity like this, and it will always be worth the gamble to take something no one else has or may ever have.
Comments from Tim McIlvaine: "He's probably one of the more famous amateur players. His fastball touching 105 and just all the hoopla that has come with him. It's fun to watch. I live in Nashville, Tennessee myself so I've seen him a good bit when he was in Junior College, and then as he went to University of Tennessee seeing him there, so kind of seen him grow into this a little bit and grow up. It's really fun to watch. It's a big arm and he has stuff and I think we feel like there are a few things that we can work on with him to make him even more effective instead of just having him throw as hard as he can all the time. He's got a nice breaking ball in there too that he doesn't always get to because he doesn't need it a lot of times but it's a big fastball and he's a good kid. He's got a good head on his shoulders - very disciplined. We met with him at the Major League Baseball Combine all together and we were very impressed coming out of that as well. For us it's not just how hard you can throw or how hard you can hit it but also in between the ears and what's inside. He checks that box for us as well.
"We may explore (the opportunity to let him start). We're gonna see how Ben feels and walk him through that. We're not going to close the door to that. We're going to leave that possibility open but for now as he goes out, we're going to run him out of the bullpen and see where it goes. He had a few extended outings this year out of Tennessee and making one start so it's not out of the realm possibility but we're going to take it slow and see where it goes."
Ben Joyce 2022 college stats: 32.1 IP, 2-1, 2.23 ERA, 14 BB, 53 K, 0.990 WHIP, 14.8 K/9
 
4th Round: Jack Madden, RHP, Northwest Florida State
A standout for Florida scouts in the spring coming off Tommy John in 2020, Jake Madden is a tall and lean on-mound athlete at six-foot-six with a loose and free arm with electric stuff. He works primarily off of his fastball which has boring action when thrown down and can run away like a two-seamer when up. It simmers around 93-96 but can get as high as 97 early in outings. Madden's slider is a real weapon as it has power in the mid-to-upper 80's and shows sweeping action against right-handed hitters and he can bury it to the back foot on lefties. His firm changeup has inconsistencies but can be a solid pitch against lefties as he'll throw it to the outer part of the plate and let it drop and fade out of the zone, while it has only worked against righties when located down. Madden is athletic on the mound and has a free-and-easy arm and room for physical development that could aid in power and durability, but his inability to throw regular strikes and below-average fastball command will leave lingering questions to his long-term ability to start. He has the looks of an electric two or three-pitch power reliever.
Jack Madden 2022 junior college stats: 47.2 IP, 4-4, 4.53 ERA, 24 BB, 76 K, 1.34 WHIP, 14.4 K/9
 
5th Round: Sonny DiChiara, 1B, Auburn
They call him Thicc King in Auburn, and there's not much debate once laying your eyes on Sonny DiChiara. Listed at six-foot-one and 263 pounds, DiChiara is a big boy who is known solely for his prowess at the plate. He has a simple power load and gets to his big boy strength with relative ease. There is no doubt about DiChiara's raw and in-game power. An ambush hitter who feasts of fastballs, even those with high velocity, there is discipline in the approach (led D1 in on-base percentage in 2022) to find his pitch to drive, which will be vital to his ability to hit for any average as he'll have to continually line the ball. Though more athletic than expected for someone his size, he is a well below-average runner and has little-to-no defensive value even at first base. The comparisons may be unfair and solely based on his size, but a hopeful outcome would be that DiChiara becomes a similar player to Billy Butler or Dan Vogelbach.
Sonny DiChiara 2022 college stats: 286 PA, .383/.549/.777, 59 R, 59 RBI, 22 HR, 0 SB
 
6th Round: Victor Mederos, RHP, Oklahoma State
Once seen as a projectable power arm in high school, the projection hasn't disappeared, but the performance has faltered Victor Mederos some into mid-day-two territory. Strong with a starter's kit physical profile, strike-throwing ability - or the lack thereof - has altered Mederos' projection and may land him in a relief role down the road. The inability to find the zone cost him a weekend rotation spot with Miami his freshman year and he transferred to Oklahoma State as a draft-eligible sophomore where he was able to start but with lackluster performance. His fastball can be explosive in the mid 90's, sitting 93-96 while touching 98-99 at times, though it is solely arm-speed based and is a dart that has been hit. The slider is Mederos' best weapon as he can alter its shape while getting whiffs in different forms, whether it be a tight two-plane offering playing off his fastball, or sweepy breaker that can force chases out of the zone. Mederos will throw a spike curve and changeup that both show promise, but he struggles to locate either making them purely raw average-or-better offerings at present. Mederos will get a look as a starter in development but with his high-effort delivery, irregular strike-throwing, and high-tempo on the mound, he seems like a reliever with some high-leverage upside.
Victor Mederos 2022 college stats: 66.0 IP, 4-4, 5.59 ERA, 21 BB, 62 K, 1.36 WHIP, 8.5 K/9
 
7th Round: Roman Phansalker, RHP, Oklahoma State
Going back-to-back on Oklahoma State arms, Roman Phansalker differed from his counterpart as a solid mid-relief arm. Scrapping his traditional four-seam for a two-seam fastball, Phansalker has impressive arm-side run upwards of two feet that will sit 91-95 that plays well from a lot three-fifths slot. He compliments this with a changeup that is mostly slot-and-separation based but will fade similar to his two-seam. Altering paths and crossing over, Phansalker can miss bats with his tight slider. He has enough fastball command to focus on the secondaries in hopes of a weak contact mid-relief profile.
Roman Phansalker 2022 college stats: 54.2 IP, 6-3, 3.46 ERA, 22 BB, 45 K, 1.23 WHIP, 7.4 K/9
 
8th Round: Dylan Phillips, TWP, Kansas State
Taken as a two-way player by some surprise, Dylan Phillips will enter pro ball as a DH/reliever with intrigue to follow on his two-way progression. At the plate, Phillips has a swing meant for damage while throwing the barrel through the zone and lift with an uppercut finish. His defensive profile will be held to corner outfield or first base. On the mound, he has been up to 95 from the left-side and the Angels had interest in him as a pitching prospect, as well as at the plate, though most believe his value is on offense.
Comments from Tim McIlvaine: "We do want him to pitch so we're gonna be careful with that. Right now, we're probably going to DH him and let him pitch out of the bullpen until he can kind of get it going a little bit and get a little more comfortable in that role and figure out how much he's able to do. He will be doing both. We like him both ways. We had him as a prospect as a hitter and we had him as a prospect as a pitcher as well. He wants to do both. We talked to him about it and he's all good for it."
Dylan Phillips 2022 college stats: 257 PA, .283/.362/.513, 40 R, 44 RBI, 13 HR, 8 SB / 20.1 IP, 0-1, 2.66 ERA, 3 BB, 26 K, 0.79 WHIP, 11.5 K/9, 8 SV
 
9th Round: Joe Stewart, OF, Michigan
Joe Stewart is one of the eldest players for the class as a senior at Michigan, who put together two strong performance seasons for the Wolverines. A solid athlete, Stewart has the defensive traits and above-average speed (used on the basepaths as well) to chance him staying in center field long term. The athleticism plays at the plate as he can make adjustments quickly and has some natural strength and power in his lofty swing.
Joe Stewart 2022 college stats: 303 PA, .349/.409/.572, 73 R, 56 RBI, 13 HR, 23 SB
 
10th Round: Matt Coutney, 1B, Old Dominion
Finishing their second day of the draft, the Angels day two tone didn't alter when taking another big-bodied masher in Matt Coutney. A fifth-year senior, Coutney was among the eldest statesmen for the class who punished younger talent throughout two years at Old Dominion. The left-handed hitter has excellent barrel control that helps gives him plenty of zone coverage. His swing has some natural loft and will put the ball in the air with normality. Among the college leaders in home runs, OPS, and slugging, Coutney’s calling card is his all-fields power that should translate into pro ball, and he has more value than a standard fifth-year senior sign with upper-level and Major League platoon upside. His defensive value is limited to first base.
Matt Coutney 2022 college stats: 275 PA, .376/.473/.808, 66 R, 70 RBI, 27 HR, 3 SB
 
11th Round: Caden Dana, RHP, Don Bosco HS (NJ)
Kicking off the third day with a big projection arm, Caden Dana is a New Jersey prep whose data-based pitches were a drawing tool upwards of the third round and will be an over slot sign for the Angels. Dana's projection starts with his frame, standing tall at six-foot-four and physically stout at 215 pounds, he has the present body of a workhorse starter already as a high school senior. With a clean and easily repeatable delivery, Dana is an arm-strength based pitcher, Dana will work his high-spin fastball 92-95 and has touched higher in shorter stints, and let's it play all over the zone with feel for command. Dana's curveball is the calling card as another high spin offering with some power. It's a big-breaking pitch that arcs high with a late vertical drop. In its raw present state, it's a plus offering, but he'll have to locate it better through development to make best use of it becoming a premier swing-and-miss option against more advanced hitters, but it should serve well through the low minors. There will be focus on his other breaking ball, a sweepy mid 80's slider, and changeup, as he shows some feel for both but are below-average offerings currently. Although a big kid, there is room to fill in the frame to leave little doubt about his durability and chance to remain a starter, and potentially see some velocity jumps. Everything in the package has the makings of a workhorse starter.
Caden Dana 2022 high school stats: 47.1 IP, 1.33 ERA, 70 K
 
12th Round: Jared Southard, RHP, Texas
A re-draft from 2019, the Angels took Jared Southard eight rounds earlier than when they did in 2019 out of high school in Leander, Texas, just north of Austin. Southard has filled out well into his physical frame and has a power relief arm. His two-pitch arsenal is pro ready, starting with his fastball that sits 92-96. His fastball has life and ride up in the zone but is best suited blending and tunneling with his slider, as the two alternate breaks across the zone. He'll work his fastball running away to his arm-side and counter it with a mid-to-upper 80's slider with a tight and late vertical break to his glove side. He comes at hitters with a low three-quarter slot that gives deception and allows the two pitches to work off of each other. There's some low-risk relief ceiling here.
Jared Southard 2022 college stats: 29.1 IP, 4-1, 2.76 ERA, 19 BB, 46 K, 1.159 WHIP, 14.1 K/9
 
13th Round: Tucker Flint, OF, Chipola College (FL)
Starting a back-to-back on junior college standouts, Tucker Flint went from a contact-first athlete in high school to a more power-toned hitter at the plate that was an offensive leader for one of the top JUCO's in baseball. There's some balance at the plate to believe in him getting to his power and potential for hard contact to the gaps. He can work counts and put together competitive at bats leading to some hopeful on-base potential. He is likely destined for a non-premier corner position.
Tucker Flint 2022 junior college stats: 242 PA, .370/.496/.708, 71 R, 41 RBI, 14 HR, 12 SB
 
14th Round: Sabin Ceballos, C, San Jacinto College (TX)
Sabin Ceballos is a converted catcher from the infield with twitchy athleticism to move around the field, anywhere from behind the plate, to the dirt, to the grass. He comes equipped with a plus-plus arm registered at 99 from shortstop. An MLB Draft League standout, coaches liked his potential behind the plate, and he shows good lateral movement. He has a physical and athletic build so there's hope of offensive upside, though it will likely come with some swing-and-miss.
Sabin Ceballos 2022 junior college stats: 281 PA, .338/.470/.530, 54 R, 46 RBI, 8 HR, 7 SB
 
15th Round: Bryce Osmond, RHP, Oklahoma State
Among all the Angels draftees, Bryce Osmond may have the biggest signability question and a return to Oklahoma State wouldn't be out of the realm of realities. Viewed as a day one pick as a high-schooler, Osmond still has top five rounds kind of stuff and upside in the bag. An athlete on the mound who was a shortstop prospect in high school, Osmond has a tall and lean build at six-foot-three and 185 pounds, giving indications of a lengthy workload. He works from a high arm slot with present arm speed and strength with some effort. Osmond is at his best when he can command his fastball to all quadrants of the zone and let's it play and ride up in-and-above the zone, sitting 91-95 with some mid's at its peak, though it is hittable due to its minimal movement. His slider is a true out pitch, with a sharp and late vertical break that he can locate well to the bottom of the zone and get under swings. He'll work in an occasional curve and changeup with the curve being the better of the pair, though they are distant to his fastball and slider. With his athleticism and size there is rotation upside but to reach that he'll have to develop his curve and/or changeup, and throw better strikes as his control is fine but command will come-and-go
Bryce Osmond 2022 college stats: 60.2 IP, 4-2, 4.75 ERA, 31 BB, 77 K, 1.37 WHIP, 11.4 K/9
 
16th Round: Casey Dana, OF, Connecticut
Going to another fifth-year senior, Casey Dana is the older brother of Caden Dana who the Angels took the 11th round. The organization's original interest came in the elder of the Dana's due to his grit and toughness, as well as his offensive toolset. Spending most of his time in the corners, Dana profiles as a hit-first left fielder or first baseman.
Comments from Tim McIlvaine: “We were talking about the older brother, Casey, who goes to UConn. We were talking about him the other day as just a guy we were targeting to begin with. Our scout up there has seen him at UConn. He's a tough kid. He got 28 stitches and missed like two days and then the next series went 8-for-13 in the series. He had a .926 OPS, 12 homers this year, hit a few really long home runs while we had guys in attendance there so he's actually a guy we were targeting as a draft pick to begin with and then once it kind of came together that we took his brother with our first pick on day three, that's when we said, 'We gotta get this guy. It'll be such a great story and what a neat thing for two brothers to play pro baseball together.' We were really excited about it. We're glad it came together, and we can't wait to see where that story goes. I think it'll be really fun.”
Casey Dana 2022 college stats: 310 PA, .313/.381/.546, 57 R, 61 RBI, 12 HR, 4 SB
 
17th Round: Sammy Natera Jr., LHP, New Mexico State
Pitching at a launching pad, you can toss any of Sammy Natera Jr.'s pitching performance numbers out the window as is the case with most New Mexico State arms. Natera has plenty of projection in a solid physical starter's kit frame at six-foot-four and 195 pounds. Natera will work his fastball in the low 90's and has been up to 95 from the left side. His breaking ball has plenty of growth remaining and there will be some questions answered quickly once he gets into pro ball as the thin air of Las Cruces made it challenging to project the future of the pitch with irregularities to its break, though it has bat-missing potential. Natera will have to improve his strike-throwing ability and find some more consistent command to have further success.
Sammy Natera Jr. 2022 college stats: 26.0 IP, 2-1, 6.92 ERA, 20 BB, 44 K, 1.65 WHIP, 15.2 K/9
 
18th Round: Max Gieg, RHP, Boston College
Seen more as a thrower than a pitcher, Max Gieg was a swing type for Boston College. A fastball dominant pitcher, he'll work in the mid 90's with some considerable run to his arm-side and ride up in the zone that plays best inside to right-handers and away from lefties. His slider has some sweeping action in the mid 80's. He'll have to throw more strikes. Gieg has a limited track record, but the frame (6'5, 200) and green arm suggests he could have some excess power in the arm.
Max Gieg 2022 college stats: 22.2 IP, 4-2, 2.78 ERA, 19 BB, 26 K, 1.46 WHIP, 10.3 K/9
 
19th Round: Luke Franzoni, OF, Xavier
After focusing on physical strength, Luke Franzoni had a power surge this spring, hitting 29 home runs which landed him second across Divison-1 baseball. Though it's a brief history of power output, scouts have faith that it will play in pro ball as his bat speed and physicality improved. Franzoni is a passive hitter who steadily awaits his pitch and will work counts and draw his fair share of walks. Despite a quiet setup that gets him to separation with ease there is some swing-and-miss in the game. He fits solely in a non-premier corner profile.
Luke Franzoni 2022 college stats: 270 PA, .358/.489/.825, 64 R, 78 RBI, 29 HR, 1 SB
 
20th Round: Brendan Tinsman, C, Wake Forest
Working as one of the primary catchers over his four years at an elite program, Brandon Tinsman brings an advanced backstop skillset to the Angels. Catching some premier arms and high-end velocity, which includes two first-round picks in Jared Schuster and Ryan Cusick (both first-round picks for Atlanta in 2020 and 2021), Tinsman has some fine qualities behind the plate, supported by a strong and accurate arm that will keep runners honest. Steadily becoming more aggressive at the plate over his time with the Deacons, Tinsman is an ambush hitter who found some success in driving the ball this spring, leading to a school single-season record, 24 home runs. There is a blend of enough offense and defense in the profile to feel comfortable in a long-term depth catcher with some backup hopes.
Comments from Tom Walter, Head Coach at Wake Forest: “Tinny (Tinsman) had one of the greatest seasons in school history. Throwing out nearly 40 percent of would-be base stealers and leading a really good offense in home runs and second in RBIs while catching 59 games in 15 weeks is beyond impressive. He is going to be a steal of the draft for the Angels.”
Brendan Tinsman 2022 college stats: 268 PA, .355/.397/.710, 63 R, 69 RBI, 24 HR, 1 SB
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It's about time.

The Angels need to get creative and find a way to get Luis Rengifo and Jo Adell in the lineup every night. 
It's easy right now for Rengifo because Fletcher and Rendon are out, but next year, he still needs to be playing everyday at 2B/SS. I know Minasian will be looking to upgrade the offense and SS/2B figure to be the main avenue for that, but I'd keep Rengifo playing everyday, even if it means transitioning Fletcher toward a super utility role where he's playing 70% of the time. I believe Rengifo's upside is worth it. 
And it won't be as easy for Adell. But at this point, I'm fine if they trade Walsh or Ward in the right deal. As long as the return is worth it, I feel like the sooner Adell can get enough AB's to make adjustments, the better. Both Adell and Marsh should be pretty good major leaguers, even if they aren't so at 23/24. As long as they are at 25+. 

I am looking forward to Marsh cutting off his hair and beard in some weird superstitious baseball player attempt to start hitting.

It seems to me that the hitters just seem to have too much going on in their heads. They seem to swing at pitches way out of the zone guessing on a pitch and then let pitches go right down the middle obviously expecting something else. They swing at pitches that don’t look close from the time it leaves the pitcher’s hand. Is it too much information causing them to lock up? Or is the information they are getting not accurate? Are they just going all in off tendencies of a pitcher and not working on adjusting to pitches especially with two strikes? 

It seems to me that the hitters just seem to have too much going on in their heads. They seem to swing at pitches way out of the zone guessing on a pitch and then let pitches go right down the middle obviously expecting something else. They swing at pitches that don’t look close from the time it leaves the pitcher’s hand. Is it too much information causing them to lock up? Or is the information they are getting not accurate? Are they just going all in off tendencies of a pitcher and not working on adjusting to pitches especially with two strikes? 

I think some people are making big assumptions about Adell's mind set when they really have no frickin' idea about what he's actually thinking and feeling.

What throws me off is Marsh LOOKS like he can hit, Stassi LOOKS like he can hit. 
I've kinda thrown the towel in on Velazquez, Rengifo and Legares but it's painful to see Marsh and Stassi struggling. 
It's like they're up there guessing and guessing wrong, their approach is off. I also see them watching way too many strikes right down the pipe, usually early in the count. Then they fall behind and they're screwed. I feel like they need to go up there not thinking about the count and just waiting for their pitch to hit, even if it is the first one of the at bat. 

The Angels did not place themselves in a position to win last night's game.
Sending Adell down Friday and starting Lagares I don't understand. Giving Ohtani rest last night and starting Tyler Wade out in CF bit them.  Self inflicted loss.

All he needs to do is tighten up the defense..   People who think they need to punt are nuts.

CRod's injury is listed as a lat strain which means it is probably not located in his back or even related to his back injury from before.  The lat attaches up in the shoulder which is most likely the area he injured and re-injured according to IP.  I'm sure they have shut him down from throwing for now and will slowly try and build him back to be ready for the season next year which could mean he may not be ready by Spring Training.  If he's not ready by Spring Training, he should be ready soon after as long as there is no re-injury.

Just to clear Trout's injury up, there are 3 degrees of strains.  1st degree is a few fibers which usually heal fairly quickly. 2nd degree is a section of the muscle is torn and depending on how many of the fibers are torn is how long it takes to recover.  3rd degree strain is a complete rupture of the muscle which requires surgery to repair especially if you are a superstar athlete.  So 2nd degree strains are the ones that are the most difficult to put a time table for the healing because it depends on the amount of muscle fibers torn and then allowing the scar tissue fill in without causing more problems.  I am surprised that it has taken this long but sometimes it does take a long time.  I am sure the Angel's medical staff is very good at their jobs and are doing all they can to get him healthy.  Hopefully that clarifies some of the confusion on his injury.