The Los Angeles Angels have been void of impactful major league-ready prospects in recent years with the underwhelming, or inconsistent production out of their recent crop of young players. They have routinely ranked towards the bottom of farm system algorithms for several years.
After Angels general manager Perry Minasian dealt outfielder Brandon Marsh to the Philadelphia Phillies in exchange for Logan O’Hoppe at the trade deadline, they acquired a catching prospect who is ready to produce as early as this season.
Prior to the deal, Sam Bachman was the club’s top-ranked prospect, but Minasian understood that Marsh was at a difficult crossroads in his development and took a route with O’Hoppe who has yet to tap into his next level. The Angels also added depth in their prospect pool after making a few additional moves to free up salary and banking on a change of scenery for some young players, via Kiley McDaniel of ESPN.com:
27. Los Angeles Angels – $96 million
Preseason Value: $91 million (29th)
Graduating LHP Reid Detmers is the big loss here, but he was replaced as the lone Top 100 talent in the system by former Phillies catcher Logan O’Hoppe — who was added at the deadline for Brandon Marsh. The Halos also added CF Mickey Moniak in the Noah Syndergaard deal and LHP Tucker Davidson in the deal for RHP Raisel Iglesias. They also scooped up a couple of my favorite players in the draft in SS Zach Neto and RHP Ben Joyce, along with intriguing upside gambles in RHP Jake Madden and RHP Caden Dana.
The Angels have never been an organization with a consistent flow of prospects, but to be optimistic about the future, giving Minasian credit for pulling the cord on Marsh and redirecting his efforts to O’Hoppe could pay dividends given where the club is at in their direction.
What’s next for Angels’ outfield
Without another outfield prospect on the cusp of reaching the major leagues, the next question to be asked would be wondering who will be the surrounding pieces next to Mike Trout in the Angels’ outfield.
With Marsh in the Phillies organization and Jo Adell seemingly taking one step forward and two steps back, Minasian faces an odd situation with having to replenish the farm or add veteran outfielders to the mix in the offseason.
Oddly enough, the Angels’ closest outfield prospect is 22-year-old Jordyn Adams who is with their Double-A affiliate, the Rocket City Trash Pandas.
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