3 surprises in MLB Pipeline's top 30 Angels prospects for 2025

The critics have been loud. The Angels' farm system has near-unanimously been ranked the worst in the league, and the logic behind the basement dwelling ranking varies from legitimate to asinine.

Some analysts don't like the top prospects in the system. Others do, but don't like the depth. Still others hold things like not trading Shohei Ohtani for a haul against the franchise, as if some hypothetical return is really a means to dock the players who are actually in the system.

Still others take issue with the Angels' player development method, lamenting that the system would rank higher if a plethora of young players who are already contributing to the big league club were still in the minors.

The farm system rankings from MLB.com recently echoed that position, however, they also added some positive spin by highlighting how that strategy has opened the door for some of the organization's talented teenagers to rise quickly, making the future outlook a bit more rosy.

That leads into the MLB Pipeline top 30 Angels prospect list which is full of some surprises and some reasons to be optimistic about the future despite the system's poor ranking overall.

Christian Moore dethrones Caden Dana as the Angels no. 1 overall prospect

Everywhere else the pecking order has consistently been Caden Dana no. 1 and Christian Moore no. 2. In many ways, Dana is an anomaly, drafted out of high school back in 2022, bucking the Angels trend of picking highly-polished college players.

And while the 21-year-old has been a fast riser through the system, making his MLB debut as a September call up last season, it's become clear that he needs more seasoning. He skipped AAA entirely to make three big-league starts, but has struggled in his limited exposure to major league talent.

While he dominated AA, posting 9.75 K/9, 2.59 BB/9, 0.66 HR/9 and a 2.52 ERA, he saw the strikeouts plummet to 6.97 K/9, the walks balloon to 6.10 BB/9, and the homer rate reach an astronomical 4.35 HR/9 as he got roughed up to the tune of a 9.58 ERA in just 10.1 innings.

Those struggles against more advanced competition have continued this year in spring training where his strikeout rate (9.58 K/9) and walk rate (9.58 BB/9) are identical and his HR/9 are better yet still elevated at 1.59, en route to a 15.88 ERA before his demotion to minor-league camp.

Christian Moore on the other hand looks like the more big-league ready of the two. While the assumptions that he'll be the Angels' opening-day second baseman have been growing throughout the offseason, he's yet to be anointed as such with manager Ron Washington preferring to make him earn it.

After a hot start to the spring, Moore has cooled down a bit but is still holding his own. He's hitting .267/.333/.333 this spring where everything but his power has been on display over the course of his 33 plate appearances. MLB pipeline notes that Moore has 25-30 home run power, cementing why as a middle infielder he's so highly regarded.

The tandem of Moore and Dana highlight the unique way in which the Angels' draft and player development apparatus can be effective, producing talent and feeding the major league club despite the poor rankings.

Moore was drafted in the first round, no. 8 overall, ahead of higher ranked but younger players who would've required larger bonuses to forgo college. Dana was an 11th-round pick who received a bonus that was way over slot value.

This strategy means the premium draft assets are used to quickly feed the big-league roster in Anaheim while more assets are available to bring in younger, high-ceiling low-floor, prospects later on in the draft and in the international market.

These younger players then get the full attention of the minor-league player development personnel who have more opportunities to work with them in order to maximize their potential since potential logjams are cleared with the quick promotions of the higher-level, older prospects.

It might not make for pretty farm system rankings, but if it provides a consistent pipeline of impact talent to the majors, it is a worthwhile approach.