Hidden Gems in the Angels Minor League System

There are so many players in the Angels Minor League system that Baseball America and baseball prospectus have no idea about, but scouts are all over these kids.  The Angels have the top two scouts in all of baseball in terms of seeing potential where others don't.  Most specifically Eddie Bane and Tom Kotchman, and those guys know exactly who we have.

1. Carlos Ramirez.  He was the best offensive catcher in college, and no one wanted him because his body and defense can't keep him there.  Because of our depth, he'll be in the pitcher's league, low A Cedar Rapids, but his bat is ready for AA already and he's been a pro for only a few months.

2. Fabio Martinez.  His stuff is electric.  Scouts are already calling him the next Ervin Santana.  He's 20 years old and will blow through our minors.  he's set for Cedar Rapids next year, but don't be surprised if he ends up in Rancho.  He could be in AAA by the end of next year.

3. Tyler Skaggs.  While most scouts are aware that he's a good high school prospect, what they didn't realize is how good he is.  Bane was convinced Skaggs was the 2nd best left handed pitcher in the country.  While he's not ready for the pro's, if he went to college, in 3 years he would be dominant in the same fashion.  It's not his fastball, it's his movement, location and offspeed pitches.  He's far beyond his years.  His delivery needs to be more repeatable, but we have the perfect coaches for that.

4. Garret Richards.  He's all stuff, no result thus far.  He wasn't overly effective in college and he was only a reliever, but our scouts saw something that others didn't.  Richards was projected as a late round pick at best, the Angels grabbed him early and surprised everyone.  The Angels got a hold of him and have tweaked his delivery, all of a sudden he's a starter and he might be the best in terms of stuff in the entire system, outside of Martinez and Walden perhaps.  I'm not sure his future, but his ceiling resides a lot higher than the average prospect.

It's not to blow my own horn, but I've been right and wrong before.  I was right about Saunders, Reckling, Pettit and Sandoval.  I have been wrong about Jeremy Moore and Peter Bourjos.  The jury is still out on Mark Trumbo.  I think he's not going to be a successful major leaguer or minor leaguer, but he's made a lot of good adjustments the past couple years.  Perhaps he's a late bloomer.