3) Mark Trumbo, 1/16/86 - 1B, OF
.301/.368/.577 with 36 HR and 3 SB. +29 bat, +3 glove, 4.12 WAR
Trumbo is the most controversial prospect in the Halos' system, featuring gargantuan raw power and a good contact rate for a slugger, but little patience and no defensive value. The pop has fueled decent slash lines going back to 2007, but the sum of his other contributions made him just the 36th most productive Angels' prospect (according to WAR) in both 2008 and 2009. The one-dimensional nature of his game has limited the hype, though the fact that it's the longball dimension means that everyone knows his name. In 2010, the stars aligned for him: Salt Lake' altitude helped his power to shine, he kept his K rate around 20%, and he boosted his walk rate to within a hair of that important 10% benchmark. While he hit for decent average and good power all year, his BB rate showed a clear upward trend all season, which either reflected improving skills, or some combination of poorer AAA pitching (in the second half, many of the better PCL pitchers get promoted) and decreasing protection in the Bees' lineup. His current production in Venezuelan winter ball is very good: he's walking in 10% of his plate appearances and putting up a .344/.404/.613 slash line with 5 HR's in 103 PA's, though his K-rate has also spiked to 32%. It doesn't look like there will be an opportunity for him on the Halos' 2011 club, so Trumbo will likely go back to mashing and refining his outfield skills with the Bees. He's a likely candidate to experience a AAA sophomore slump, which seems to afflict every Angels' prospect who tears up the PCL in his first go, but must deal with the disappointment of returning the following season.