LA Angels Best 1st Round Picks in Franchise History

The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim have drafted many names over their 59-year history, with some booms and some busts.

When Angels fans peer out into centerfield, they are reminded daily of the team’s success in the MLB draft. The ability to select, and develop a talent like Mike Trout is what every scout and general manager dream about. Each and every draft should be about finding the next building block for your time and watching that pick blossom into a star.

Of course, it doesn’t always work like that.

The MLB Draft by its very nature is fickle. Scouting and selecting between hundreds of players each season, and then hoping they continue along the path of their potential through the gauntlet of the minor league system is almost as difficult as hitting a curveball. Every once in a while a team is going to barrel one up and take it out of the park, but they will fail more often than not. After all, the draft is a project where quality is found through mixing and matching the right quantity.

When the Angels make their first pick of the 2020 draft, they will be doing so for the 60th year. And like most franchises, they have enjoyed their fair share of success in the draft while also enduring more than enough failures. There have even been a number of solid selections that found success elsewhere. The key is mitigating that valleys between so as to not set back the franchise for years on end.

With the 2020 MLB Draft slated to start virtually on Wednesday, we thought it would be nigh time to look back at the best of the first-round picks for the Angels over the years. For this exercise, we’ll focus on exhibited most of their value as members of the Angels, even if they moved on to other teams down the road.

Angels Best 1st Round Draft Picks – The Pitchers

There is perhaps no bigger premium in baseball than pitching. The best teams have it in droves while the bottom teams struggle to put a competent staff together. While some of that success is driven by the almighty dollar, with teams paying heavily in free agency to add aces to their teams, other teams have been reliant on the MLB Draft to find and develop needed talent.

While recent drafts haven’t been especially pleasant to the Angels from a pitching perspective (outside of the 2009 draft), the team has managed to find some solid arms on draft day.

Jim Abbott – 1988 (8th Overall)

Originally selected by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 34th round of the 1985 MLB Draft, Jim Abbott instead opted to go to the University of Michigan. That proved to be a smart move for the lefty, as he spun three solid seasons in Ann Arbor into being a top-10 pick in 1988. In fact, he was so polished as a pitcher that he never threw a single pitch in the minor leagues before joining the Angels rotation in 1989.

Known mostly for being a Major League pitcher with only one hand, Abbott was much more than his physical ailment. As a rookie, he would go 12-12 with a 3.92 ERA, a 3.72 FIP, and a 5.7 K/9. He would be traded to the Yankees following the 1992 season in a trade that would net the Angels J.T. Snow. However, the Angels would reacquire Abbott at the 1995 trade deadline. He would spend five total seasons in California, going 54-74 with a 4.07 ERA, a 3.91 FIP, and a 5.1 K/9 for the Angels, and accrued 14.3 of his 19.7 bWAR with California.

Jered Weaver – 2004 (12th Overall)

Regardless of the fact that he pitched nine games with the Padres to end his career, Jered Weaver will essentially be considered an Angel for life. Selected with the 12th overall pick, Weaver (34.6 bWAR) trails only Justin Verlander (71.6) in terms of value out of the first round of the 2004 MLB Draft.

As for what he did for the Angels, Weaver put up a record of 150-98 with a 3.63 ERA, a 4.07 FIP, and a K/9 of 7.1. That includes three top-five finishes in the American League Cy Young voting and three All-Star appearances. In terms of franchise records, Weaver ranks second in wins, 3rd in strikeouts, and 11th among starters with 500 or more innings pitched.

Frank Tanana – 1971 (13th Overall)

Unlucky number thirteen certainly turned into a lucky pick for the Angels. Falling to the Angels with the 13th overall pick in 1971, Frank Tanana was easily the most valuable first-round pick of his draft class, being worth 57.2 bWAR over his career (Jim Rice is second, with a 47.7 bWAR). He also ranks behind only Mike Trout (72.8) in terms of value among those selected in the first round by the Angels.

Tanana spent the first eight seasons of his big league career with the California Angels, going 102-78 for the Halos between 1973 and 1980. He currently ranks 6th in wins for the Angels, 5th in strikeouts, 2nd in complete game, and 2nd in shutouts. He finished his Angels career with a 3.08 ERA, a 3.18 FIP, and a 6.9 K/9. The Angels would send him to Boston in a deal that brought back Fred Lynn, and Tanana would pitch for four other organizations, and won 240 games over his career.