Eric “Mitts McGee” Stamets
The Arizona Fall League has come and gone already, meaning the Japan Series is now the only thing standing between us and the complete absence of baseball until March. To keep the (off)seasonal melancholy at bay for at least a few hours more, let’s take a quick look back at how the Angels prospects fared in AFL action.
The Halos had eight players suit up this year, and I’ve (sort of) ranked their performances here from best to worst. Whether you decide their numbers are really indicative of anything or not is up to you. Just keep in mind that in 2011, Mike Trout, on the cusp of setting the world afire, batted .245/.279/.321 in 106 AFL at-bats.
1. Cal Towey – 3B/OF
.279/.375/.426 with 2 HR, 4 2B, 9 BB in 68 AB
Towey performed incredibly well in his first real taste of pro ball against players his age, putting up a slash line nearly identical to his High-A numbers (.279/.364/.417) this past season. If the corner utility man can maintain that consistency at the plate in his first taste of Double-A next season, he could be in Anaheim by the end of the year. Lord knows the Angels can always use another lefty bat with some pop, especially one who can play third base.
From Jeff Moore of Baseball Prospectus: “If [Towey] can show that his left-handed pop will translate against better pitching and in a more neutral hitting environment, he could end up being a useful piece.”
2. Eric Stamets – SS
.279/.302/.377 with 1 HR, 1 3B, 1 2B, 1 BB in 61 AB
Widely regarded as a defense-first guy, Stamets surprised by holding his own at the plate against some of the minors’ top pitching talent. The low OBP is not great, but, with his glove, you’ve gotta think the Angels would be elated if he could put up that kind of offensive production at the MLB level.
Stamets OPS-ed only .601 in his first foray at Double-A, so a repeat appearance in Arkansas seems likely, but it’s fun to ponder if a promotion to Salt Lake City might be better for his confidence in the batter’s box. PCL-inflated or not, solid offensive numbers probably do wonders for a player’s self-esteem.
3. Nate Smith – LHP
3.27 ERA, 23 H, 8 R, 8 BB, 21 K in 22 IP
Smith’s AFL debut got off to a bit of a rocky start, but he really turned things around in the final two weeks. The left-hander allowed just three runs on three walks and 15 strikeouts over 12⅔ innings in his last three starts, lowering his earned-run average by more than a run and a half.
Where Smith goes from here is one of them known unknowns. I guarantee he’ll get at least an invite to big-league Spring Training, but whether that’s followed by a move to Triple-A Salt Lake or further seasoning in Double-A remains to be seen. No matter where he ends up, I expect him to at least usurp Michael Roth as the go-to young (and healthy) lefty starter on the depth chart by the end of 2015.
4. Chris O’Grady – LHP
1.42 ERA, 5 H, 2 R, 6 BB, 8 K in 12.2 IP
O’Grady was sporting a goose egg in the runs-allowed department until his final AFL appearance, when he served up a two-run dinger to a lefty, of all people. A 1.42 ERA is still fantastic, obviously, but it’s a bit of a bummer he couldn’t run the table.
The southpaw did struggle a bit with the free pass, but seeing how he had a 1.8 BB/9 over the last two seasons coming into Arizona, I’m willing to chalk the six walks up to a small-sample blip. With the way O’Grady handled the Cal League in 2014, he should be able to make quick work of Double-A Arkansas’ pitcher-friendly environment in 2015.
5. Chad Hinshaw – CF
.284/.343/.410, 4 2B, 12 BB in 67 AB
Hinshaw is yet another guy at the end of his first full professional season who managed to close out the year on a high note–see also: Nate Smith, Cal Towey. In addition to his 12 walks, the speedy center fielder also stole seven bases and finished the short season with five hits in his final nine ABs.
As we covered in our Arizona Fall League preview, Hinshaw usually gets plunked by a lot of pitches. I’d love to see if this held over in the AFL, but unfortunately they don’t keep HBP stats for the league. Let’s just assume it did, for the hell of it.
Hinshaw, too, should make the dreaded jump to Double-A in 2015.
6. Trevor Gott – RHP
6.48 ERA, 12 H, 6 R, 2 BB, 5 K in 8.1 IP
For whatever reason, Gott threw two fewer innings than anyone else on the Solar Sox. He appeared in nine games, which was comparable to the other 19 pitchers on the team, but never handled more than one frame at a time. It’s possible this was by design–he did already double his 2013 workload during the regular season, after all–but it could have also just been bad planning on the manager’s part. Who knows.
No matter the reason, eight sub-par innings aren’t going to derail Gott’s chances of cracking the bullpen at some point next year. With half a season at Double-A under his belt already, Gott could be on the short track to the 40-man roster if he can replicate his 2014 numbers.
7. Kaleb Cowart – 3B
.185/.224/.259, 3 3B, 4 BB, 15 K in 81 AB
From Jeff Moore of Baseball Prospectus, again: “His approach gets him in trouble, often selecting the wrong pitch in an at-bat on which to pull the trigger. But the raw talent is there, and there’s no reason he isn’t better than a .220 hitter… I’m not out on him yet.”
The Angels have publicly dropped the hint that they might move Cowart to the mound, but they won’t say anything definitive yet. As it probably should be. No need to make any final judgments until Spring Training rolls around. He’s still just 22, but is also now eligible for the Rule 5 Draft.
8. Mark Sappington – RHP
5.25 ERA, 10 H, 7 R, 7 BB, 8 K in 12 IP
Now playing the part of Sir No-Longer-Appearing-In-This-Organization. Sap was dealt to the Tampa Bay Rays early last week.