Open Thread: Futures Game + MLB Draft Day One

Two exciting events today that may tease a little something about the next horizon for this Angels ball club. Sunday is funday for Halos farm watchers and futurists, as we have both the Futures Game and Day One of the 2021 MLB Draft to look forward to.

The Futures Games starts at 12pm Pacific time and will feature both the Angels #1 draft pick from 2020, Reid Detmers, and wildman reliever Hector Yan, currently with the High A West Dust Devils. Detmers will pitch the third inning for the American League, and Yan will pitch the eighth.

The inclusion of Yan is a bit of a headscratcher. While MLB Pipeline considers him the #9 prospect in the Angels’ system, their system is not among the elite ones in baseball, and Yan has really been struggling this year, especially with control (BB/9 of 7 at the moment) – which might make for an incendiary and decisive moment when he comes on in late innings in the context of a big media showcase. (Good luck, Hector.) A more logical choice for a second Angels selection would have been Chris Rodriguez or Brandon Marsh, but it may be that their health statuses when the rosters were determined were uncertain.

You can watch the Futures Game on the MLB Network or live streaming at MLB.com.


After the Futures Game, 2021 MLB Draft coverage begins! Tonight’s coverage begins at 4pm Pacific, broadcasting out of Coors Field in Denver. It will be featured on both the MLB Network and ESPN, and will cover the first 36 selections of the draft. That means all of Round One plus seven picks in the compensation rounds before Round Two. Rounds two through ten will be covered on Day Two on Monday.

That means the Angels have exactly one selection tonight, at #9, which will probably be announced somewhere between 5 and 6pm Pacific.

Recent gossip and last minute mock draft updates from Baseball America and the MLB draft analyst team of Mayo and Callis confirm what I had suspected – the virtual consensus that the Angels were reaching for a prep bat like Will Taylor (or Bubba Chandler) in round one is likely a lot of “smoke” (to use Callis’ term). Now the emerging consensus is that the Angels will likely catch a falling star, grabbing one of the Top Eight should they fall – meaning, specifically, Jackson Jobe, Kumar Rocker or Brady House. If one of those three are not available, they will look at college pitchers like Ty Madden or Sam Bachman, or perhaps Will Bednar or Gunnar Hoglund.

This is all good news, should it be so, but the inclusion of House in that mix, and the always-looming specter of a weird underslot selection from among the hordes of raw youth the Angels covet certainly adds more intrigue than usual this year. It will be interesting to see if the Angels resist the tooled-up power profile of Brady House should he be among the Eight that fall to the nine slot. He’s likely a long-term third-baseman, and he gets Gallo comps, but is more physical and athletic. He’d add another boom-or-bust prospect to they system in the mold of Jeremiah Jackson, but with a more well-rounded toolset and a higher floor.

Whatever the Angels end up doing, it will be highly conditioned by what the eight teams preceding them announce at the podium. It should be a pulse-quickening event.


Let’s use the comment sections here as an Open Thread to cover all the Sunday action. We’ll post an article on the lucky winner once he’s selected this evening.

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steelgolf
Legend
3 years ago
Reply to  Turk's Teeth

Do you think they will take a HS player with pick 45? If so I would probably pick Bubba over Will.

eyespy
Super Member
3 years ago
Reply to  Turk's Teeth

Ver and Max all over

TapatioMan
Trusted Member
3 years ago
Reply to  Turk's Teeth

Really nice for them.

steelgolf
Legend
3 years ago
Reply to  Turk's Teeth

Woah!

FungoAle
Legend
3 years ago
Reply to  Turk's Teeth

That worked out pretty well. I’m not even sure Angels would have taken Jobe had he fell. Perry seems to be smitten with Bachman.

eyespy
Super Member
3 years ago
Reply to  Turk's Teeth

Been going on all evening, you are just so tied up running this awesome board and being the perfect host. Time to sit down and have a glass of Chardonnay

eyespy
Super Member
3 years ago
Reply to  Turk's Teeth

Cheers

gitchogritchoffmypettis
Legend
Reply to  Turk's Teeth

GOOOOLLLLLDDD! Gold upon Gold!

gitchogritchoffmypettis
Legend

Lipstick Monster – “Joe Mack, you’re a New York kid. How excited are you to go to Derek Jeter’s team!”

Joe Mack – “Um. Yeah. I’m from like eight hours from New York so, I’m happy to be drafted by a team. Yeah.”

Cowboy26
Legend
3 years ago

The best part of this draft is the Asstros get Dick in the first round.

gitchogritchoffmypettis
Legend

Jay Allen is actually kind of Mike Trouty

gitchogritchoffmypettis
Legend

Maddox Bruns….. this pick is brilliant because the Dodgers picked him.

TapatioMan
Trusted Member
3 years ago

Lol. Hate them.

2002heaven
Super Member
3 years ago

I wonder If we would’ve taken Bachman ahead of Leiter? 😡  💩 

Jeff Joiner
Editor
Legend
3 years ago

Who did Ty Madden piss off?

Fell completely out of the first round.

Rahul Setty
Admin
Trusted Member
3 years ago
Reply to  Jeff Joiner

Very interesting. Wonder how much $ he’d ask for as a second round draftee.

gitchogritchoffmypettis
Legend
Reply to  Rahul Setty

He’s a junior right? Can he go back to Texas? If not, he will take what he can get.

gitchogritchoffmypettis
Legend
Reply to  Turk's Teeth

Honestly I get him falling. I saw a lot of chatter on the tube webs that he’s just not that impressive. Throws hittable velo and a slider…. and not much else.

I mean, other than name recognition he pretty much sounds like a 2nd rounder to me. Hell, there are other pitchers on the board still that I want more than him.

TapatioMan
Trusted Member
3 years ago

What miracle are the Dodgers about to pull off, I wonder.

eyespy
Super Member
3 years ago
Reply to  TapatioMan

Convince their pick to skip college

gitchogritchoffmypettis
Legend
Reply to  eyespy

Yeah…. some kids may actually want to go to Miss State at this point.

FungoAle
Legend
3 years ago

I can understand two Will Smith’s in MLB but two Max Muncy’s? The odds.

eyespy
Super Member
3 years ago

It’s coming up a lot tonight. How do you measure swag?

FungoAle
Legend
3 years ago
Reply to  eyespy

With a Swag-O-Meter? Had to say it, something that you or Cowboy might have said.

eyespy
Super Member
3 years ago
Reply to  FungoAle

You were sitting on that, shame

gitchogritchoffmypettis
Legend
Reply to  eyespy

Well, first be on a TV network. Then spend about 10 minutes looking into the player you are talking about. Then look at that player’s clothing. Determine a swag level. Talk about it.

Petty’s gonna make it because he has swag. I have a shit ton of swag. You will all be invited to my MLB Hall of Fame induction.

eyespy
Super Member
3 years ago

Chases dad is Thanos, and he knows it

MarineLayer
Super Member
3 years ago

Our pick would have been cool if the Dodgers made it at their point in the draft. Except they would pick someone better, even there.

Cowboy26
Legend
3 years ago
Reply to  Turk's Teeth

Only 18 more picks and he’s ours!

eyespy
Super Member
3 years ago
Reply to  Cowboy26

Around the corner

FungoAle
Legend
3 years ago
Reply to  Turk's Teeth

What would you account that to? His lack of ball movement on his fastball and secondary pitches?

max
Trusted Member
max
3 years ago

Lol they are booing the Commish every time he comes out to announce a pick. I bet that doesn’t happen in the NFL

2002heaven
Super Member
3 years ago

Oakland A’s get Max Muncy again……LOL!!!!

2002heaven
Super Member
3 years ago
Reply to  2002heaven

comment image
unbelievable……are you guys sure Eppler’s gone? Maybe he can block a NFL edge rusher like Khalil Mack ( 6ft 1in 235 lbs ) but who knows if he can pitch.

Last edited 3 years ago by 2002heaven
TapatioMan
Trusted Member
3 years ago

Oakland gets a redemption chance with a different Max Muncy lol

FungoAle
Legend
3 years ago
Reply to  TapatioMan

Very true. One of Billy Beans rare mistake.

gitchogritchoffmypettis
Legend
Reply to  FungoAle

Actually, you know what’s funny, a bunch of the A’s fans I know are pretty down on A’s drafting the last 10 years. Picking Kyler Murray really broke the camel’s back for them, but I looked and it’s true, they have had pretty meh drafts.

2002heaven
Super Member
3 years ago
Reply to  Turk's Teeth

Matt Olson, Matt Chapman, Sean Murphy?

Cowboy26
Legend
3 years ago

Then I guess its time to trade the 2 Matts for a boatload of prospects

FungoAle
Legend
3 years ago

I had not followed their drafts too close but his manipulation of the major league roster and moving players for prospects has been pretty effective. Yeah, Kyler Murray was a huge misread.

eyespy
Super Member
3 years ago
Reply to  TapatioMan

Starting in Center Field for your LA Dodgers, Max Muncy, the other Max Muncy

gitchogritchoffmypettis
Legend

By Cusick…..

Jeff Joiner
Editor
Legend
3 years ago

Really liked this kid since Turk’s piece last week. Cleveland likely continues their pitching pipeline.

eyespy
Super Member
3 years ago
Reply to  Turk's Teeth

They read your write-ups. You should change a subscription

2002heaven
Super Member
3 years ago
Reply to  Turk's Teeth

Ryan Cusick goes to Perry’s former employer…….Someone let me know when ESPN talks to Sam Bachman ( absurd!!! a reliever first? ) 😠  😣 

gitchogritchoffmypettis
Legend

Well poop. My dreams are dead.

TapatioMan
Trusted Member
3 years ago

Damn Cleveland team.

eyespy
Super Member
3 years ago
Reply to  TapatioMan

Steaming mad at them

FungoAle
Legend
3 years ago

Andrew Abbott might make it through until tomorrow being about a 50 ranking.

gitchogritchoffmypettis
Legend
Reply to  FungoAle

Eh. I’m just being envious. There are plenty of guys who may be around at pick 45. Guys like Tommy Mace…. that kid from Miss State that wasn’t Bednar…. Joe Rock…. there are plenty

FungoAle
Legend
3 years ago

I saw you had listed him yesterday, just an arm I feel would be worth taking next round. Watched ACC baseball this year. Williams would have been better.