Monday, August 31

ANAHEIM -- It’s been nearly a month since the Angels overhauled their farm system by trading away seven players ahead of the Aug. 3 Trade Deadline, so it’s time to check in and see how their new prospects have been faring.

The Angels started it off by trading catcher Logan O’Hoppe and reliever Chase Silseth to the Rangers on July 29 before making a slew of deals on the day of the Deadline, including trading right-hander José Soriano to the Blue Jays, reliever Ryan Zeferjahn to the Cubs, outfielder Jo Adell to the Guardians, reliever Kirby Yates to the Pirates and reliever Brent Suter to the Braves.

It netted them nine players in return, including their new No. 1 prospect (No. 38 overall) Arjun Nimmala as well as No. 21 prospect Mason McGwire (son of slugger Mark McGwire) and No. 22 prospect Jacob Cozart. It’s a reason why the farm system is considered on the rise and was recently ranked No. 17 overall by MLB Pipeline after starting the season ranked No. 28.

Here’s a look at how the players they acquired are doing since joining the organization:

From the Soriano trade:

SS Arjun Nimmala

The 20-year-old is the best prospect the club received before the Deadline and is off to a solid start with Double-A Rocket City despite suffering a lacerated left hand on a slide into home in his second game. He's slashing .259/.412/.407 with a homer, five doubles and six RBIs in 15 games, showing off power and speed. He’s also impressed defensively at short and is set to represent the organization in this year’s Arizona Fall League.

OF Eddie Micheletti Jr.

After posting an .800 OPS in 93 games at Double-A in Toronto’s system, he’s scuffled at the plate with Double-A Rocket City. The 24-year-old has batted .158/.314/.298 with two homers, two doubles and eight RBIs in 18 games. But he’s hit .353 with a homer and five RBIs over his last six games.

RHP Angel Rivero

The 19-year-old had an impressive showing in the Florida Complex League, with a 2.36 ERA and 52 strikeouts in 42 innings, and the Angels promoted him to Single-A Rancho Cucamonga. In two starts (nine innings), he has allowed three runs and two walks with five strikeouts. 

From the Zeferjahn trade:

C Moisés Ballesteros

Ballesteros, ranked as a Top 100 prospect before both the 2025 and ’26 seasons, is currently on the big league roster, splitting time between catcher, first base and designated hitter. Metrics have shown he’s hit the ball hard, but the 22-year-old has batted just .169/.225/.205 with three doubles and four RBIs in 22 games.

RHP Mason McGwire

The 22-year-old has made four starts with High-A Tri-City, posting a 4.02 ERA with 16 strikeouts and five walks in 15 2/3 innings. On Saturday, McGwire got the win after he allowed one run on four hits in five innings. He struck out six and walked two.

From the Adell trade:

C Jacob Cozart

After trading O’Hoppe, the Angels were in the market for a young catcher and the early returns have been strong on Cozart, who is also considered a premium defender behind the plate. He’s slashed .270/.370/.476 with four homers and 12 RBIs in 18 games with Double-A Rocket City. Cozart, 23, will need to cut down on his strikeouts, but his defense alone should make him a solid big leaguer.

From the Yates trade:

RHP Kyle Robinson

Robinson has pitched at three levels this year, and the Angels have been challenging the 23-year-old at Double-A. He’s posted a 7.41 ERA with 16 strikeouts in 17 innings over four starts, including surrendering two runs on five hits and three walks over 4 1/3 innings on Friday.

From the Brent Suter trade:

INF Nacho Alvarez Jr.

Like Ballesteros, Alvarez, 23, was a highly regarded prospect but is currently on the Minor League injured list with a wrist injury sustained on May 20 before the trade. The Fontana native hit .216/.277/.298 in 66 games in the Majors in ’24 and ’25 and offers positional versatility.

From the Chase Silseth, Logan O’Hoppe trade to the Rangers:

INF Angel Arredondo

Despite being just 19 years old, the Guaymas, Mexico native has held his own at Single-A Rancho Cucamonga, hitting .250/.375/.367 with a homer, four doubles and six RBIs in 17 games. He’s mostly played third base, which is where he’s expected to stick, although he’s also seen time at shortstop.

Left fielder Wade Meckler returned from the 7-day concussion list on Friday after missing the minimum amount of time. He was hit on the helmet by a fastball on Aug. 20, and said he had concussion-like symptoms for a few days before he felt better and passed his concussion protocol. He immediately came through with an RBI single and also robbed Bryson Stott of a three-run homer in the ninth inning, only for Sammy Peralta to surrender a go-ahead grand slam to Edmundo Sosa with two outs.

“I was fired up,” Meckler said. “At the time, it preserved the lead, close to winning the game, and Mike [Trout] kind of riles me up sometimes when I make a play out there. So it was a cool moment. Just wish we were able to obviously hold on and win the game.”

Who has the highest career batting average in Angels history?

A. Rod Carew

B. Garret Anderson

C. Darin Erstad

D. Vladimir Guerrero

With lefty Yusei Kikuchi’s return to the rotation, the Angels will employ a six-man rotation led by Reid Detmers, Grayson Rodriguez, rookies Walbert Ureña, Ryan Johnson and George Klassen and Kikuchi. But manager Kurt Suzuki said it’s not set in stone it’ll stay that way the rest of the season. It could make some sense, however, with Kikuchi and Rodriguez coming off injuries, Detmers coming off a year in relief and three rookies in the rotation.

“This time through, everybody is going to make their start,” Suzuki said. “But moving forward after this, we're still kind of deciding.”

D. Guerrero, who hit .319 during his time with the Angels.

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