LA Angels: Impressions from Inland Empire 66ers Media Day

Prior to the Opening Night festivities for the LA Angels High A MiLB organization, the Inland Empire 66ers, we here at Halo Hangout met with some prospects and coaches with the team regarding the upcoming season among other topics for Media Day. Among those we spoke with include team manager Ryan Barba and fan favorite Torii Hunter Jr. among a couple other members of the team.

The Inland Empire 66ers have been home to quite a number of high level prospects within the LA Angels system. From Brandon Marsh and Jo Adell last year to possibly Jordyn Adams later this year, the 66ers have become a passing ground for the future elites. However, regardless of the top prospects that come through the system the 66ers stands as a great team for their own.

The entire coaching staff with Inland Empire have a way of nurturing a strong chemistry and trust among their players and that’s something that can bring memorable success to the team within itself, not just the individual top prospects that make it their home for a short stay.

Last season, 2018, saw the 66ers come just inches from a playoff berth, the team dropping out of the race within the last 3 games of the season. It was tough to watch such a talented team go down so late in a playoff race, but at the same time it showed just how strong a foundation for future success had been laid.

The most encouraging thing about all this? A winning team produces a winning mentality, if the Angels MiLB affiliate can continue to build upon these winning ways, especially to the point of playoff success, the prospects who become a part of that success will be able to take that experience and imparted knowledge all the way to the top.

Manager Ryan Barba

The Inland Empire 66ers manager, Ryan Barba, is in his second season with the team after managing the corps through the 2018 season. The introductory season for Barba saw him manage the biggest prospects in the Angels system; from Griffin Canning to Jahmai Jones, most everyone on the Top 25 prospect lists have come under Barba’s watchful eye.

Managing a team of young, hungry MiLB’ers is a tough job within itself, but when you add in the developmental responsibilities a batch of top prospects bring you have yourself one of the most important roles within this fledgling Angels organization.

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One way to ensure constant, big-time winning from the core of prospects that will soon head to Anaheim is to simply put them in a winning environment. You don’t have to send them to the playoffs to create this winning structure, but what you do need to do is surround them with the intent of winning and the actions/preparations that go into crafting a winning attitude.

Barba [on sending his players to playoffs]: “I don’t sit there and necessarily focus on the playoffs, we focus on tomorrow. On today. We try to win the day and if we’re in the playoffs at the end of the day then we are. It’s a great experience for the players, it’s a great experience for the coaching staff. But like I said, we come out here, we focus on today and go from there.

“It’s just all of us doing our jobs, you know? Day in and day out we’re getting these players better, hopefully getting them out and improving their craft, communicating with them and giving them the best information we possibly can.

Barba [on the developmental process]: “It’s one of those things where you sit there and you trust the process. When they’re up at the plate we’re making sure they’re executing what they need to execute. Same thing on the mound and defensively, at the end of the day if we take care of those things as a collective unit the game will take care of itself.

We can leave here and look at ourselves in the mirror and understand that we did what we had to do, we executed what we needed to execute. Whether a base hit, a quality at bat, a certain pitch or whatever have you. We understand that and we trust the process, at the end of the day we know the wins and losses will take care of themselves.

Barba [on his 2018 squad]: “We had a really good group. I put the lineup out there and watched them while understanding they’re giving their all, that’s something I felt we had that all season. You don’t really have to sit there and pick out favorites, every single one of them means a lot to our staff, to our organization. When we roll them out there its fun to watch them go out there and do their thing.”

While the focus is on developing players in the MiLB it doesn’t change the game of baseball; a game that ends with winners and losers. You don’t want to trudge a plethora of prospects through the sludge of a losing season. Sure there are players aren’t effected by losing environments, they just want to play and work on their craft, but not all athletes are cut from the same cloth.

In order to provide the best developmental environment possible you want to do whatever you can to send your players home happy and confident. One way to do that is by sending them home winners. It’s not always easy to accomplish that in the MiLB when situational managing has a lesser importance than keeping your players worked. Even if it isn’t the best player for the situation.

Barba [on improving his management skills]  “You’re always learning. We have a great staff as a whole, not just here but throughout the organization. You’re in constant communication with them. Spring Training is a great time to enhance your knowledge of the game in all aspects. You’re always trying to learn, soaking up information, what works for you, what may not work for you. What works for your group, communication wise, and what kind of dynamic you can have in the clubhouse. You’re always learning

You do some reading, check in on some books. Gain knowledge that way. You’re always communicating, there are a lot of guys around the organization you talk to. Not only are you co-workers, but you’re also friends. If something pops up in a game, maybe a playoff game or something, you give ’em call and have an open discussion about it. That’s how you learn about it. Just talking about it and throwing in some scenarios. You’re always thinking about the game.

I’m happy where I’m at; it’s not about me, it really isn’t. It’s about the players. If we know everyday that we, as a staff, put everything into these players then we can have that deep breath after the fact knowing that we got everything done that we needed to accomplish for the day and enhance their knowledge and their talents.”

Barba [on keeping his team paced throughout the season]: “I think you pace yourself out from the beginning, you don’t backload it into August or September where you start giving them days off from BP and the such. You pace it out throughout the season, you have a feel for your players. You understand the road trips they go on and how it affects their body. You give them days off and get a feel for your staff and your players.”

OF’er Torii Hunter Jr.

Torii Hunter Jr. is back with the 66ers after finishing the 2018 season with the team, where he hit .327/.373/.382 in 60 plate appearances. Hunter Jr. has experienced the deepest grinds of the MiLB system, from the purgatory that is extended Spring Training to taking his skills all the way to Spring Training in 2019. Hunter Jr has experienced it all and his baseball knowledge/prowess is all the better for it.

Hunter Jr played football at Notre Dame during his college years while spending a smaller amount of time on baseball with the university. Despite his status as a standout wide receiver he took to signing with the Angels after bring drafted in 2016. Hunter Jr is the type of athlete that absorbs all possible knowledge is surrounded by, which in turn makes is 2019 Spring Training experiences some of his most valuable yet.

Hunter Jr [on his Spring Training experience]: “I feel good, I learned a lot this Spring. About myself, about that game itself. I’m just ready to build on that and carry it into the season.

I was going back and forth between minor league and big league camp, so I wasn’t one of the non-roster invitees. I’m just trying to continue to better my game, promotions [of myself] and everything else isn’t in my power but I can control showing up to the field everyday and how much I put into getting better everyday. That’s one of the things I’m going to focus on, just continuing to get better everyday.” 

Of course one of the things you hear as the son of a prolific Major League star is comparisons to your fathers style of play. While the genetics from Torii Hunter to Torii Hunter Jr have been passed on there also lies the desire to separate oneself from a legacy that is not your own and create your own path. Hunter Jr received a lot of comparisons to his father this past Spring for making multiple highlight reel defensive catches in the outfield. Despite his defensive style of play reminding of his father, Hunter Jr is planning on creating his own legacy.

Hunter Jr: [on comparisons to Torii Hunter]: “I mean it’s kind of hard not to see it with the internet and stuff like that. I get a lot of comparisons, defensively at least, to my to my dad. At the end of the day I’m still trying to come into my own game and become my own person. 

I want to continue to become a better hitter. That’s one of the areas I’ve been working on this offseason. Defense is something I’ve always prided myself on, it came more naturally than hitting did for me. I just want to continue towards becoming a better hitter and progress in that area.

Hunter Jr [on his off-season workouts] “A lot of baseball specific stuff. Not trying to move a ton of weight, but still moving weights and staying potentiated. Trying to build some muscle mass here and there, just trying to continue keeping my body in good shape and making sure it’s not completely torn up by the time I get to Spring (laughs)”

Torii Hunter Jr has appeared in four games through the young 2019 season and has 2 hits and 3 runs alongside 3 BB’s.

1B David MacKinnon

David MacKinnon entered the 66ers in 2018 as a relatively unheralded prospect after slashing .261/.438/.351 with the Low A Burlington Bees. MacKinnon was brought up to replace the surging 1B Jared Walsh after he was called up to Double just a month into the 2018 season. MacKinnon has shown a natural affinity for defensive play at 1B, an affinity he attributes to years of time as a soccer goalie in college.

As he likes to describe it, the skills needed to become a great goalie are one in the same with those skills needed to become a great defensive 1B. Quick reflexes, agile feet, litheness in movement and exceptional reflexive range.

As a first baseman MacKinnon knows that offensive production is the name of the game and that attitude started to reflect in his hitting approach as the 2018 neared its end. In his first three months as a 66er MacKinnon hit just 2 home runs, but at the end of the season?

MacKinnon spent August absolutely raking the ball, all in all he flashed a slash line of .363/.487/.626 with 4 HR’s, 12 Doubles, and 22 RBI’s in that month. For reference, that RBI total is double his previous highest total (11 RBIs in July).

Los Angeles Angels

None of that came from a fluke streak, though MacKinnon naturally produces low-line drives with his swing he began to put a focus on getting lifts with strong exit velocity on his drives.

MacKinnon [on his improved hitting to end 2018]: “I made a bunch of swing changes last year and some other adjustments. I’ve continued doing the drill I was doing at the end of last year and made sure my stance looks the same.

I’m a big believer that your stance is your stance and the swing will happen. If you start everything right everything else should follow, the swing and everything else. I focused a lot on that in the offseason plus getting more comfortable doing all that stuff since it was new last year.

The toughest part of any season is getting used to live pitching again and getting used to putting the ball in the air a little bit more. It’s been easier to hit the ball on the line for me, produce those low-line drives, so I’m working on putting the ball in the air and continuing what I did last year.”

“As a first-baseman that’s kinda what you need to do. If you’re playing a corner position your job is to hit pretty much. The defense isn’t secondary, but your job when you get to the big leagues is to hit and put numbers up. The biggest thing for me is maintaining what I did at the end of last year and carrying it over into a full year, not just for one month.”

MacKinnon [on his goals for 2019]: I think the goal for everyone is to move up as fast as possible. It’s a blessing to be here again, I take every advantage of it and I enjoy being here as long as I am.Hopefully I play well and get to move up, the Angels are aggressive.

They’ve moved guys up two places in a year. I think everyone’s goal in the Angels system is to move up two levels. If you don’t have lofty goals there’s no real point of playing baseball. If you’re not playing to get to the big leagues than what’s the point? The goals always to get to the big leagues, is that gonna happen this year? I don’t know, maybe not. That’s always the goal though, that’s where my minds at, I want to get there as fast as possible.

Hopefully I end up in Anaheim in the next year or so.