This was really nice week for the Angels, going 5-1 against AL West foes and climbing into a tie for second place with the Seattle Mariners.
The team was led by the pitching this week. Yusei Kikuchi was nails on Monday, going 7 and a third innings of one hit, one walk baseball. The following night, Jose Soriano struck out 12 Athletics while going 7 innings.
Angels hitters were kept in check most of Tuesday night and the game went into extra innings. Our Highlight of the Week is Nolan Schanuel’s game winner in the bottom of the 10th inning.
Check out those numbers up above. A wRC+ of 120 means Nolan is 20% better offensively than the average MLB hitter. That’s a nice piece for a future core. That places him right between Zach Neto’s wRC+ of 126 and Logan O’Hoppe’s 98.
Nolan deserves some serious love from the Angels faithful. And while he picked up our Highlight of the Week, he was on the other end of the likely Highlight of the Year.
I’ve watched that time and time again and am still amazed. We’ve likely never seen a better catch at the Big A and I’d be shocked if we see a better play in MLB this season or a few more. That is an all time great catch.
Not to be outdone, Jo Adell is showing the promise that once made him one of the top prospects in all of the game. Adell has been on a tear since the calendar hit June.
The four kids above will now be joined by another. In continuing with recent history of quick MLB promotions, last year’s first round pick Christian Moore is joining the big league club.
Moore got off to a slow start in AA this season but has heated up in the thin air of the PCL. He’s slashing .350/.424/.575 in 20 AAA games.
I’ve long stated my dislike of having our AAA team play 5000 feet above the big league ballpark. Color me skeptical of this call up but hoping I’m wrong. Moore looked to have issues with breaking balls in AA. Once the balls stopped breaking, he started mashing.
The kid definitely has talent, as evidenced by his college highlight reel.
And that segues perfectly to the College World Series. The NCAA baseball world has returned to its summer home in Omaha with games kicking off today. Check out the bracket and schedule here.
Just jumping in to the college season? Here are 7 storylines to help you enjoy the Series.
The draft is always a huge storyline as the best college teams in the nation face off. None so more than this year for us Angels fans as the team holds the 2nd and 47th overall picks in the draft.
Here’s an updated mock draft from MLB. I’d be perfectly happy with that pick. Note that Washington is still looking at as many as 8 players with the top overall pick. That speaks to the combination of depth and lack of true standout player(s) in this draft.
If you haven’t yet read Turk’s Teeth’s great piece on the Angels likely selections in the first round, do so. In his relative absence the last couple of years I’ve been reading up more on prospects and I have to say Turk’s is great at his analysis and real credit to our site. He should be charging for what he puts up here.
Happy Father’s Day to all you dads out there and please link what I missed. Also, please be careful out there. Stay safe, keep your ID on you at all times, and know that your life is full of people who care about you.
I’m not sure what I’m going to do. What I’m not going to do is work. I’ve been doing an insane amount of that lately and a game of catch with my son sounds like the greatest thing in the world right now.
It’s raining in Baltimore.
Apple TV Sucks!
Apple TV game? Screw that, and I have an Apple TV subscription for some reason, I think my wife wanted it for reason.
The hyphenator is now a Buccaneer
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/06/pirates-claim-michael-darrell-hicks.html
C Moore taking HOF snubbed Bobby Grich’s old no. 4 Jersey Number.
I hope he does him proud.
The draft is a landscape fraught with much fear and trepidation. Like Kosovo or Barstow. It is a sad donkey’s paradise. You can point to about 1000 things that can go wrong with even TOP rated picks and be proven right about as often as when you guess that at least one person working in a strip club had daddy issues. Low hanging fruit for low IQ egos.
Today, just another day in baseball land, what was widely called “the top college bat” a few years back in Andrew Vaughn just got traded to a scenery change. Gunnar Hoglund has had his slow rise to mediocrity derailed by arm problems. He was drafted in the first round TWICE, by the Pirates and then the Blue Jays out of a good SEC program. Top pitching prospect in the game years ago Forest Whitely has finally had his “we give up” trade from the Astros to the Rays.
All of those guys had more hype than most of the guys we are looking at drafting…. we are researching how Perry and Arte managed to screw them up.
I have a hunch this class will be better than people predict it will be. There’s just a lot of parity in NCAA baseball in a lot of ways.
The 20 round draft is now 4 years old. That has both pushed a lot of kids to the college ranks and kept a lot of kids in the college ranks. Guys are getting fewer at bats against sophomores and pitchers are facing lineups with talent top to bottom.
Of course the numbers at the top of the draft board will take a hit when there aren’t soft spots here and there to pad your stats.
Shaun Anderson DFA’d
Only one Anderson remains!
“There can be only one!”
Highlander-Sean Connery w/Scottish accent playing an ancient Spaniard (Though the country wasn’t called Spain at the time)
One of my favorite movie series growing up as a kid.
He also later played a Russian with a Scottish accent.
”Suck it, Trebek!”
Yes!
MLB Owners rooting for Angels and the Angels Way.
https://www.latimes.com/sports/angels/story/2025-06-13/angels-christian-moore-draft-picks-mlb-dodgers
“The Angels are trying to win without investing heavily in player development or scouting”
Idiots. This is how you know they are not serious on strategy or tactics.
Or maybe Shaikin is full of Shait.
He not, for many years he has been very smart writing about the local teams and very honest too. His insight has been mostly correct.
The Angels Way? 90+ losses AAV since Perry arrived.
What! We don’t need no stinkin’ Player development or scouting, just look at our record. 😲
Just an inkling of research would have dispelled the notion they are not investing in the minors.
Yes they are behind a lot of other teams but Perry has gotten Arte to spend money on development facilities and committed to future investments but why ruin a narrative.
I actually think the “move em fast” method can work well BUT it involves changing some of the methods on the farm. All the young flyers etc go to AZ/DSL type places and learn to tie their shoes. BUT you invest HEAVILY in coaches and tech at places like Tri-Cities/Madison and draft college guys with VERY discernable skills and some easily seen flaws. And you have coaches ready to attack those flaws right away.
So I’m a GM/POBO/POPP/LMNOP and I know we will need cheap OF within two years. I know that finding raw power is easy in upcoming drafts. I hire coaches that will directly address cutting down strike outs and hitting off speed pitches. I draft seven college OF with raw power and at least average footspeed who make OK contact. They all basically do 3-12 months of intensive training at A+/AA. Then they get fazed into having a shot at the MLB, they stick, or they fail but gain data, then they either work more at AA or get stashed in SLC.
So you spend more… at just two places. Those that survive AZL/Rookie/A ball also get rolled into this system. You can do it within a farm too. Have six middle infielders who can’t field or have low contact rates in the lower minors? Hire extra coaching etc for that and work em to death in Tri-Cities. Need to teach 4 failed infielders to play the OF? And so on.
But almost all your kids are international signs. You primarily draft college guys who have what you want but need select improvements and you work on just those things and advance them quick.
In the end, it is cheaper than investing in lots of affiliates equally.
Also try to establish upper level affiliates whose parks and leagues better emulate Major League Baseball stadiums i stead some of these band boxes and launching pads.
I still have net figured out the logic of why lower level minor leagues use a slightly smaller baseball than the Bigs. What idiot thought this was a good idea?
Small childlike hands?
Unfortunately you need a town full of people to have an MiLB affiliate and you’d prefer it to not be a six hour flight from the MLB team… so West Coast teams are pretty limited as far as “sea level” stadium sites. It gets worse when you need enough people to support a PCL team.
I have wondered why more West Division teams don’t just put their AAA team in a suburb of the MLB team. Like Atlanta does or Seattle with Tacoma. Put a PCL team in Temecula, Northridge, Concord, San Jose etc. Far enough from main team that it’s easier for a large population to just go watch a PCL game, but it builds a layer of extra connection between the area and it’s fans.
I am in complete agreement but it does require a plan and some investment.
Yeah I think that article lost all validity at Owner rooting for…..
You misunderstand. Other owners are rooting for that, so that they don’t have to worry about the Halos at the MLB level.
I didn’t misunderstand anything but I also understand your point. Hey what happened to DG? I know you guys were tight on some level. Not my business but he is missed
I didn’t link it because it is behind a paywall, but The Athletic’s article on Tyler Skaggs yesterday was informative.
Wade Miley was apparently an early supplier of Tyler’s and text message’s reveal him asking other teammates for pills. Kay’s family found numerous pills divided into little baggies which is a clear sign of selling drugs.
Really nothing groundbreaking if you’ve ever been in the drug/party scene. But it definitely alludes to there being a drug scene in the Angels clubhouse.
Miley never played for the Angels, right?
Nevermind Jeff, Skaggs and Miley were teammates in Arizona.
This is just one subject I would like to see go away…Skaggs, pills, baseball players do drugs, player sells off his prescription pills…
Been a very good week. Lots of pieces contributing, fun to watch. Gotta say the highlight was Denzel Clarke’s catch. That was Mays-worthy.
Happy Friday the 13th!! 😱
In the NCAA WS I’m going to root for Coastal Carolina or Murray State just cause some people like to watch the world burn. Though the French War Roosters or what ever Coastal Carolina is are actually in the playoffs all the time so it’s not like they are a total shocker being here.
I thought Coastal Carolina got hosed a bit on their seeding. Of course, as a small town guy I always think us outsiders get hosed.
So I rooted for them in their Super Regional and will probably keep rooting for them and UCLA.
I’d put money on Arkansas, though.
I’m as usual sticking local, so GO Bruins 🐻
I’m also going local, Oregon State
I would like to see more of Arquette. Watched a handful of game and yet to see a big strike or hard hit ball. Trying to be sold that he is worthy on a 1/1 or 1/2 in the MLB draft.
Dude look at Schuper Schanuel. you know exit Velo is overrated even with them metal clubs
Copy that but I’m not even seeing him square up a ball no matter the material of the weapon. If he is the best college bat in the draft, I’m not seeing it.
I’ve seen him play several times on ESPN+ and he’s barreled up plenty of balls this year.
He’s also been better defensively than I thought he would be. He’s not Neto, but he’s a decent college SS. He’s not going to stay at SS in most organizations, but he’s good for this level.
I can relate to doing an insane amount of work lately so I took Thursday and Friday off, Thursday being my birthday as well. Have a great weekend and definitely don’t do any work.
Happy birthday Mr. Hobbs!
Don’t work this weekend Jeff!
Happy birthday! And watch out for jealous women and the Whammer!
but they are soooo hot.
( Btw I meant the women not Whammer (R.I.P.) )
Happy Birthday!!!
We are birthday twins, RH!
Happy belated birthday, I hope you had a wonderful day 😇
Awesome. To you as well.
Happy Birthday, Pineapple12
happy birthday!
After a short time, writers will ask him, “Moore, Moore, Moore, how do you like it, how do you like it?”
Sorry, feeling punchy this morning.
Too bad his first name isn’t Dennis.
Dudley?
If his name was Dennis, we could pay him in lupins!
Arthur?
On the Rocks!
Dinty?
Golden Dinty after 4 K’s. Where’s the Beef!
Trout, Ward, Adell, Detmers, Bachman, Neto, Schanuel, Moore
It’s pretty cool to have 8 of our own first round picks on the team.
can’t wait for the new guy also, one month from today. Arquette at 3B makes sense to me
Being that my favorite Angels player ever is Troy Glaus, I’m kind of excited by the “Troy Glaus-ish” comp of Arquette.
And it’s about time we have a long-term solution at 3B. Our last decent 3B was Chone Figgins, and he’s not the typical power 3B. The last kind of that the Angels had was…Troy Glaus.
I also think it will be Arquette. Still think I’d go college arm but The Angels have some intriguing arms on the farm but no position player depth.
Arquette + return for Ward + return for Anderson + 47th overall pick should = huge talent influx.
+ return for Jansen
And we can’t forget the Mega Return for Newman!
It is true though that if trade partners are willing and the scouting’s not too weak we can get guys who are the caliber of arm that will be available at say pick 47 in trade. There are guys who have the same raw abilities as those college arms and have been taking their lumps in A+ or AA for a couple years, failing to fix mechanics or learn a third pitch or missing time in 2020/with injuries who are technically in a similar or better place to taking say Cade Obermueller in this draft.
50 draft grade pitchers who have not advanced quickly and look like mid-rotation arms can be had in trades if we want to draft a lot of position player talent at the top of the draft.
If we did that, but we wanted to “swing for the fences” a little I’d maybe consider extending Moncada a couple years instead of trading him and then drafting Holliday if the Nats don’t take him……
The really intriguing play here is Kikuchi.
He is playing well right now, despite the walks. There is a dearth of starting pitching among the contenders. He’s signed to a reasonable contract. He’s also 33 yrs old. It wouldn’t be a surprise if someone MAY be willing to overpay, just to get a decent SP as the stronger teams make their playoff push. Would you pull the trigger if you were Perry?
If the right package is offered, then trade him.
To me, it makes sense. You sign a veteran at a reasonable price on a rebuilding team perhaps in the hope that you can flip him for prospects. Not sure that the Angels think that way but it makes sense.
Funny enough, I was thinking to myself yesterday what a Kikuchi trade would look like.
Fwiw — I think we’ll be hovering around .500 by the deadline and keep the team as is.
If Kikuchi continues to play at this level (and lowers his walks), the fact that Kikuchi is not a rental is probably Perry’s biggest leverage in an “unreasonable” ask, favoring the Angels. Heck, he’d probably be more attractive than Tyler at that point.
Go for it, Perry! Plus, I find Yusei very frustrating to watch as he goes 0-2 to 3-2 to Walk!
This is unpossible. Arte is too cheap to select first round players every year.
Christian Moore can expect a lot of breaking balls, I assume. I will be rooting for him to stick in the big leagues. My guess is that he needs more time in the minors.
Agreed & agreed.
Yep. We’re gonna see if he can hit the squigly pitches from the jump cause EVERY iPad in the league says “challenge him with breaking stuff” on it right now.
I don’t understand why he’s in SLC if that was his big issue… but who knows? Maybe he’s got some Trix up his sneeze.