Chronicles of the Lads

WATCH LIST UPDATE
It's been nearly three weeks since the minor league season began, so here's how our guys have done in that time.

Position Players

Erick Aybar, SS, AAA Salt Lake, BB/TR

When    AB  H  2B  3B  HR  BB  SO  SB  CS  AVG OBP SLG
Now     78  27  2   2   2   5  10   6   4  346 393 500

As always, Erick is hitting for average, but, like usual, that's about all he's doing offensively. Still, a very good start in his first exposure to AAA.


Michael Collins, C, A Rancho Cucamonga, BR/TR

When    AB  H  2B  3B  HR  BB  SO  SB  CS  AVG OBP SLG
Now     67  25  5   1   2   4  10   0   1  373 427 567

A very hot start for the young catcher. He's not yet drawing as many walks as his record indicates he might, but it's still early and you can't complain about a hot bat.


Nick Gorneault, OF, AAA Salt Lake, BR/TR

When    AB  H  2B  3B  HR  BB  SO  SB  CS  AVG OBP SLG
Now     73  20  2   1   4   5  18   0   1  274 321 493

Think he's upset that Reggie Willits got the call and he didn't? Slow start at AAA or no, Gorneault has established himself at the minor league level, so if the Angels aren't going to bring him up to replace an injured Juan Rivera, they just don't have this guy in their plans. He could still be a good throw-in on a trade, assuming we had a GM who ever made trades.


Howie Kendrick, 2B, AAA Salt Lake and MLB Angels, BR/TR

When    AB  H  2B  3B  HR  BB  SO  SB  CS  AVG OBP SLG
Now     70  27  8   0   2   1  11   3   2  386 403 586

I suspect he'll get a start this afternoon, as the Tigers face a lefty for a day game antecedent to a night game, which is a usual time to rest regulars, anyway. Perhaps we'll soon see if he can maintain his high level of hitting with his, um, unconventional K:BB ratios at the highest level of the game.


Warner Madrigal, OF, A Cedar Rapids, BR/TR

When    AB  H  2B  3B  HR  BB  SO  SB  CS  AVG OBP SLG
Now     64  17  0   0   0   4  16   2   0  266 309 266

Starting his third straight season at Cedar Rapids, Warner's offense has completely stalled, as he hasn't even notched an extra-base hit so far this season. He gets one more week until he gets booted from the Watch List to the Watch Out.


Kendry Morales, 1B/DH, AAA Salt Lake, BB/TR

When    AB  H  2B  3B  HR  BB  SO  SB  CS  AVG OBP SLG
Now     74  18  1   0   3   1  13   0   2  243 253 378

As you may recall, Kendry started off pretty slowly in AA last season before really turning it on in August. As such, his slow start this year doesn't bother me. And it really doesn't bother Casey Kotchman.


Mike Napoli, C, AAA Salt Lake, BR/TR

When    AB  H  2B  3B  HR  BB  SO  SB  CS  AVG OBP SLG
Now     62  16  5   0   2   6  20   1   1  258 352 435

A very typical line of strikeouts, walks, and batting averages for Napoli; he hasn't really found his power stroke yet, however. There's no way he's going to consistently hit over .250 while striking out one out of every three at-bats.


Sean Rodriguez, SS, A Rancho Cucamonga, BR/TR

When    AB  H  2B  3B  HR  BB  SO  SB  CS  AVG OBP SLG
Now     58  23  4   1   3   2  16   4   1  397 429 655

Our center fielder of the future (keep your fingers crossed) is off to a nifty start at the High-A level. As with all Angel prospects, what bothers me here are the strikeouts and walks -- Sean does have a good track record with the latter, so I'm going to assume he's only drawn two bases on balls so far because he's been hitting the ball so well. Still, he needs to cut down on those strikeouts.

Honestly, he doesn't project as a high-average hitter at higher levels, but with the walks could put up an average of .250 with an OBP of .350. He'll have to maintain enough power as he moves up to keep pitchers honest, where they will fear him just enough to throw him some wide ones every now and then.

My ideal scenario was for S-Rod to hit 320/440/520 at Rancho this year, so the early returns on that are good (his Cedar Rapids line last year, relative to league, would have been equal to a 274/394/490 at his current level).


Drew Toussaint, OF, A Rancho Cucamonga, BR/TR

When    AB  H  2B  3B  HR  BB  SO  SB  CS  AVG OBP SLG
Now     62  17  6   0   3   7  20   1   0  274 357 516

To be honest, that line isn't all that impressive for the California League, though obviously it's way too early in the season to worry about it. He does have some pop, and he's second on the team in walks, so it's an okay start, though he'll have to put up a big year in this league to not get lost in the system.


Mark Trumbo, 1B/3B, A Cedar Rapids, BR/TR

When    AB  H  2B  3B  HR  BB  SO  SB  CS  AVG OBP SLG
Now     48   8  0   0   1   3  12   1   0  167 226 229

Yikes.


Reggie Willits, CF/LF, AAA Salt Lake and MLB Angels, BB/TR

When    AB  H  2B  3B  HR  BB  SO  SB  CS  AVG OBP SLG
Now     47  14  4   1   1   4   6   6   4  298 353 489

His call-up is more a matter of contingency than his forcing the issue; he came up to spot defense and to be a pinch-runner, which looks to be his longterm fate in the majors unless his lead-off skills are further honed.


Brandon Wood, SS, AA Arkansas, BR/TR

When    AB  H  2B  3B  HR  BB  SO  SB  CS  AVG OBP SLG
Now     78  25  8   0   5   8  29   1   0  321 386 615

I love everything here, except for the strikeouts. The fact that he's starting to draw walks is a very good sign; with his power, he's going to be pitched around, and he needs to learn to take those free bases instead of making outs on bad pitches. His incredibly high strikeout level indicates to me that he has yet to learn that lesson. He's still very young, but even if he develops to the worst case (a third basemen who hits 250/320/550), he still projects as a valuable player.


Watch Out: Brett Martinez, Dallas Morris, Ryan Mount, Aaron Peel, P.J. Phillips, Freddy Sandoval, Hainley Statia, Bobby Wilson


Pitchers

Nick Adenhart, RHSP, A Cedar Rapids

When  W  L  SV  G  GS  IP    H  HR  SO  BB   ERA
Now   3  0   0  4   4  24.7  14  1  24   5  1.46

Ace.


Steve Andrade, RHRP, AAA Omaha (Royals Organization)

When  W  L  SV  G  GS  IP    H  HR  SO  BB   ERA
Now   0  0   0  4   0   7.0   2  0  10   3  2.57

Yes, I am just this stubborn.


NEW ADDITION!
Jose Arredondo, RHSP, A Cedar Rapids

When  W  L  SV  G  GS  IP    H  HR  SO  BB   ERA
Now   0  0   0  4   4  19.7  21  0  32   7  2.75

Arredondo is a converted infielder with an obviously live arm, and his early-season performance moves him from Watch Out to Watch List with ease.


Daniel Davidson, LHSP, AA Arkansas

When  W  L  SV  G  GS  IP    H  HR  SO  BB   ERA
Now   0  1   0  4   4  23.7  27  2  12   9  4.56

The man who would be our own Jamie Moyer is off to a rocky start in his second year at Arkansas. Falling down the organizational depth chart with every ball four issued.


Gustavo Espinoza, LHSP
Our in-house Johan Santana clone, I have no idea why he hasn't started the season at Cedar Rapids. Visa troubles? Arm troubles? Does anyone know?


Tommy Mendoza, RHSP, A Cedar Rapids

When  W  L  SV  G  GS  IP    H  HR  SO  BB   ERA
Now   1  1   0  4   4  23.7  25  1  17   3  3.42

The top fastball in the system is off to a solid if unspectacular start.


NEW ADDITION!
Rafael Rodriguez, RHSP, A Rancho Cucamonga and AA Arkansas

When  W  L  SV  G  GS  IP    H  HR  SO  BB   ERA
Now   0  0   0  1   1   6.0   6  3   3   2  6.00 AA
Now   3  0   0  3   3  17.0  15  0  20   2  0.53 A Final

Another guy who moves onto the list with a lights-out early-season performance, one that's already gained him a promotion. He did struggle in his first Texas League start, but anyone who can give up less than a run per inning in the California League is worth keeping your eye on. Note: his fastball/slider style is considered pretty similar to another Rodriguez you may know about.


Steve Shell, RHSP, AA Arkansas and AAA Salt Lake

When  W  L  SV  G  GS  IP    H  HR  SO  BB   ERA
Now   0  0   0  1   0   3.0   2  1   3   0  6.00 AAA  
Now   1  2   0  3   3  18.0  20  1  10   4  4.00 AA

Bartolo Colon's injury started a chain reaction that got Steve Shell moved up from AA (where he pitched decently last season) to AAA. I don't know if he'll move back to Arkansas when everything returns to normal; he's young enough where repeating a level isn't really a setback (he has already repeated at High-A Rancho), so we'll just have to see what happens.


Von Stertzbach, RHRP
He ended last season on the DL, and there is no record of his having played so far this season.


Jered Weaver, RHSP, AAA Salt Lake

When  W  L  SV  G  GS  IP    H  HR  SO  BB   ERA
Now   2  1   0  4   4  23.0  23  4  26   4  3.91

People like pointing out that Angel hitters have inflated numbers due to their hitting environments. There is some truth to that, and for the flipside we have to remember that this affects our pitchers, too. A 3.91 ERA is pretty good in the PCL, and the strikeout-to-walk ratio is exquisite. Jered still seems to be having trouble getting the ball down and therefore keeping it in the ballpark, but it's a good performance overall, and with Hector Carrasco having pitched himself out of the rotation, we may soon learn if the Big A is the kind of friendly environ that will suit Weaver the Younger's skills.


Bob Zimmerman, RHRP, AA Arkansas

When  W  L  SV  G  GS  IP    H  HR  SO  BB   ERA
Now   0  2   2  7   0   8.7  13  2   7   1 10.38

He got hammered to open the season last year at Rancho, then straightened out and had a good balance of the year. He'll need to perform a similar trick this season against tougher competition.


Watch Out: David Austen, Trevor Bell, Stephen Marek