The Angels are contender at the MLB level, but can the farm system compare?
Note: Avg ranking takes the average of any site I could find that had team rankings (sum of ranks divided by total sites). Comp ranking is the composite for the organization; it basically is a ranking of the averages.
| Rank | Player | Pos | Avg Ranking | Comp Ranking | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kaleb Cowart | 3B | 1.00 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 2 | Nick Maronde | LHP | 2.35 | 2 | 2 | 4 | |
| 3 | C.J. Cron | 1B | 2.94 | 3 | 2 | 5 | |
| 4 | Randal Grichuk | OF | 5.83 | 5 | 2 | 14 | |
| 5 | Taylor Lindsey | SS | 5.22 | 4 | 3 | 10 | |
| 6 | R.J. Alvarez | RHP | 7.88 | 6 | 5 | 13 | |
| 7 | Luis Jimenez | 3B | 7.91 | 7 | 5 | 16 | |
| 8 | Austin Wood | RHP | 9.18 | 9 | 4 | 16 | |
| 9 | Kole Calhoun | OF | 8.25 | 8 | 4 | 17 | |
| 10 | Travis Witherspoon | OF | 9.46 | 10 | 4 | 15 | |
| 11 | A.J. Schugel | RHP | 13.00 | 16 | 8 | 19 | |
| 12 | Eswarlin Jimenez | LHP | 12.50 | 14 | 10 | 17 | |
| 13 | Mike Clevinger | RHP | 10.63 | 11 | 4 | 24 | |
| 14 | Alex Yarbrough | 2B | 11.40 | 13 | 5 | 18 | |
| 15 | Mark Sappington | RHP | 11.25 | 12 | 6 | 23 | |
| 16 | Eric Stamets | SS | 13.75 | 19 | 9 | 17 | |
| 17 | Dan Tillman | RHP | 13.64 | 18 | 7 | 20 | |
| 18 | Cam Bedrosian | RHP | 17.10 | 23 | 8 | 38 | |
| 19 | Jonathan Walsh | OF | 18.50 | 24 | 17 | 20 | |
| 20 | Sherman Johnson | 2B | 17.00 | 21 | 12 | 20 |
Sites Used (17): Angels Win, Baseball America, Bullpen Banter, Baseball Intellect, Baseball Prospect Nation, Bleacher Report, Fangraphs, Minor League Ball, MLB.com, MLB Dirt, MLB Prospect Portal, Monkey With A Halo, Prospect 361, Razz Ball, Top Prospect Alert.
Cowart is the concensus #1 in the system. As seen in the high and low, Cron and Maronde come next. After that, there is a lot of discrepancy. I did notice that the system looks pretty thin after graduating some big names the last few years, specifically Mike Trout. They don’t have a guy with Trouts potential right now, but Cowart looks like the third baseman of the future.
Another thing I noticed was the rankings of Cam Bedrosian and Chevez Clarke; the Angels sites seemed to not be as high on them as the national sites. I’ve heard a lot around Bedrosian’s potential and Clarke still has some pull to due to his draft stock; I’m cautious on them, but still think they crack the top 20 (at least Bedrosian).
My sleeper here is Eswarlin Jimenez. He’s young and throws fairly hard. If he can refine his stuff, I’d expect he’s a mid-rotation arm.
The system overall is pretty bare. Cowart is a great prospect, but there isn’t a whole lot to be excited about after that. A strong draft is needed this June, although the team doesn’t have a first round pick.