Organization ranking: 30
I've ranked every farm system, as well as the top 100 MLB prospects of 2016. Below, I've ranked at least the top 10 Angels prospects, plus an overview of the system and any other names of note beyond the top 10. I also discuss any prospects who might help the big league club in 2016, prospects whose stock has taken a big hit in the past year and a sleeper prospect (or two) I think can jump into the main Top 100 list for 2017.
A few quick notes: 1) Just as in my other prospect files, I use the 20 to 80 grading scale when scouting these prospects; and 2) If the prospect is in the Top 100, clicking on his ranking will take you to the page his scouting profile is on.
Non-Insider subscribers: Check out the free Baltimore Orioles top-10 prospects report to see what these entail.
Top 10 prospects (Top 100 rank in parentheses)
1. Jahmai Jones, OF
2. Victor Alcantara, RHP
3. Taylor Ward, C
4. Nate Smith, LHP
5. Kaleb Cowart, 3B
6. Julio Garcia, SS
7. Kyle Kubitza, 3B
8. Jake Jewell, RHP
9. David Fletcher, SS
10. Greg Mahle, LHP
Overview
Sean Newcomb is gone. Chris Ellis is gone. Elliott Morris is gone. Jose Rondon is gone. Ricardo Sanchez is gone. There just isn't much left here; I see one player I'd project as a future average major leaguer in Jones, and that's it. There are no clear starting pitching prospects, and the other position players are backups or longshots to start.
Jones is a very mature, intelligent player who happens to have good tools as well, with power and speed and the range to stay in center field. He also has shown a fairly mature approach for a kid who turned 18 near the end of the Arizona League season. He has a chance to be an above-average regular if he stays in center, and still a solid everyday player in a corner. Alcantara is a sinker/slider guy with a rough delivery that he can't repeat enough to start, and his changeup is too firm right now to be good enough to get left-handed hitters out.
Ward, the team's first-round pick in the 2015 draft, has raw power and a plus arm, but the hit tool was a big question going into the draft, and his receiving and framing are both well below average. Smith is starting now and could surface as a back-end rotation guy, with a four-pitch mix led by a good changeup, but doesn't miss many bats or keep the ball down enough to be anything more than an up-and-down guy as a starter. Garcia has great actions at shortstop and a clean, right-handed swing, but he didn't hit at all last year in the Dominican Summer League or the Arizona League at age 17.
Kubitza, acquired for Sanchez last offseason, is a bench player, a utility guy who can't play shortstop or center field and doesn't do enough at the plate to be a regular. Jewell was a catcher and hadn't pitched much before signing with the Angels; he's now working mid-90s with some feel for a slider. He's built like a starter, but his inexperience shows in his command and lack of a third pitch. Fletcher is a smart player who never strikes out and can play short, but lacks power and doesn't make much hard contact, so even in the 2015 draft, he was viewed as a potential utility player, though perhaps a very good one because of his defensive skills and ability to make contact when the latter is at such a premium.
Mahle throws 88-91 mph with a hard slider that should be effective for left-on-left situations. Right-hander Jeremy Rhoades (11) needs to move to the pen now as a fastball/slider reliever -- his changeup is minus -- and he can't repeat his delivery well enough for starter command. Right-hander Grayson Long (12) will probably work as a starter in the low minors but profiles as a two-pitch reliever. Outfielder Natanael Delgado (13) has big power, but just posted a .276 OBP in low-A at age 19, with more than five times as many strikeouts as walks.
2016 impact
There aren't any openings for rookies on the Angels' roster at the moment, which is good because there really aren't any rookies ready to help. Smith and Mahle could aid the bullpen later in the season, however.
The fallen
Take your pick. Joe Gatto, their second pick in 2014, has never shown the same stuff after the draft as he did before. Roberto Baldoquin, to whom they gave $8 million before the 2014 season, gets non-prospect grades from pro scouts. Hunter Green, their top pick (second round) in 2013, hasn't pitched since that August due to a series of injuries, including an elbow fracture that wiped out his 2015 season.
Sleepers
Jones is the best bet to jump into the top 100 next year. I'm also curious to see how Jewell develops as a full-time starter given his lack of experience -- he has had only 33 starts combined between college and pro ball -- but he hasn't pitched well enough yet to call him a potential top-100 guy for next winter.