Here are the Angels' 2024 Top 30 prospects
Jonathan Mayo
@JonathanMayoThe biggest challenge in ranking the top 30 prospects in the Angels system is getting them in the right place before they graduate.
Zach Neto, the 2022 first-round pick, played 37 Minor League games after signing and then 11 in 2023 before making his big league debut on April 15. The club¡¯s first-rounder in 2023, Nolan Schanuel, one-upped Neto. He got in just 22 games in the Minors before getting called up last August. He still qualifies, which is why he sits atop the list below, but it won¡¯t be long before he gets past that 130 at-bat marker and loses prospect status.
It¡¯s not just first-rounders, two other members of that 2022 Draft class have already touched the Majors and while 2021 in Angels terms is a lifetime ago, it¡¯s still notable that a pair of those players got to Los Angeles and have graduated. So don¡¯t blink or you¡¯ll miss it.
To offset the quick to the big leagues from the Draft mindset, the Angels have been very active in scouring Latin America for talent. More than half of the Top 30, 16 to be precise, are international signees, most at lower levels and a few years away. There¡¯s a wide variable of outcomes with these young players, but they could provide a huge wave of talent in the coming seasons.
Here¡¯s a look at the Angels top prospects:
1. Nolan Schanuel, 1B (MLB No. 95)
2. Nelson Rada, OF
3. Caden Dana, RHP
4. Kyren Paris, SS
5. Ben Joyce, RHP
Complete Top 30 list ?
Biggest jump/fall
Here are the players whose ranks changed the most from the 2023 preseason list to the 2024 preseason list:
Jump: Dario Laverde, C (2023: NR | 2024: 8)
After Laverde signed for $350,000 in January of 2022, he had a solid debut in the Dominican Summer League, hitting .298 and posting a .403 on-base percentage. He took another step forward during his United States debut in the Arizona Complex League, finishing with a .306/.419/.455 line and getting the Angels excited for what he could do over a full season.
Fall: Werner Blakely, 3B (2023: 8 | 2024: NR)
When the Angels took Blakely in the fourth round of the 2020 Draft, they knew it might take some time for the Detroit area high schooler to develop. It looked like he was figuring things out with a .917 OPS over 55 games in his first taste of full-season ball. He couldn¡¯t follow it up in High-A, though, with a .647 OPS and a 36.6 percent strikeout rate over 92 games.
Best tools
Players are graded on a 20-80 scouting scale for future tools ¨C 20-30 is well below average, 40 is below average, 50 is average, 60 is above average and 70-80 is well above average. Players in parentheses have the same grade.
Hit: 60 -- Nolan Schanuel
Power: 55 -- Joswa Lugo
Run: 80 -- Jordyn Adams
Arm: 60 -- Juan Flores
Defense: 60 -- Jordyn Adams
Fastball: 80 -- Ben Joyce
Curveball: 55 -- Kelvin Caceres
Slider: 60 -- Camden Minacci
Changeup: 55 -- Ryan Costeiu
Control: 60 -- Jorge Marcheco
How they were built
Draft: 13 | International: 16 | Trade: 1
Breakdown by ETA
2024: 7 | 2025: 3 | 2026: 10 | 2027: 5 | 2028: 4 | 2029: 1
Breakdown by position
C: 3 | 1B: 1 | 2B: 1 | SS: 6 | OF: 5 | LHP: 1 | RHP: 13