Angels News: Rookie affiliate Orem Owlz no longer tied to organization

The Angels are set to lose their rookie-ball affiliate, the Orem Owlz.

Major League Baseball’s lackadaisical approach to its minor league affiliates has been well documented over the past few years, but it appears they are trying to make some drastic changes to their process. According to multiple sources, the MLB is planning on starting up a ‘partner league’ and in that, will cut ties with tons of minor league affiliates. One of the casualties of the league’s announcement is the Angels’ rookie ball affiliate, the Orem Owlz of the Pioneer League.

The minor leagues are integral to the Angels’ future success as they try to develop talent to supplement a roster that is loaded with talent at the top in the form of future Hall of Famers Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon along with Japanese sensation Shohei Ohtani.

Changes will be taking place for lots of Major League Baseball clubs as they try to upkeep their minor league facilities to a level that is state of the art. A club will reportedly stay in Orem as Major League Baseball’s league office also announced that cities with existing clubs will be rewarded with new ones before they look to expand their outreach.

Players that are drafted will now look to go to either A-ball or High-A right out of the draft as opposed to getting lower level instruction at rookie ball affiliates. In this, the Angels will save some money and the players will save their own time instead of spending long tenures in substandard facilities and with lesser pay.

This deal will crush the dreams of many players who likely were never going to see any Major League Baseball action in their lifetimes, but it still hurts. Minor league baseball is a huge part of the culture of many towns across the nation and it is now being stripped away. This move, however, does help those in baseball more than it hurts them, so hopefully the long-term effects of this move are seen in a positive light.