Angels make a 0 downside, all upside signing of former top international prospect

The Los Angeles Angels, more so than many other teams, enjoy taking fliers on once promising talents and hoping that they can blossom after a change of scenery. The Halos do it at both the major and minor league level, with recent examples being with players like Yoán Moncada and Tim Anderson -- two position players who flamed out after flashing All-Star+ level talent with the Chicago White Sox over the course of several seasons. Well, the Angels went back to the well of bringing in White Sox busts recently.

Oscar Colás was once a top-100 prospect heading into 2023, but was just outright released by Chicago after slashing .163/.245/.255/.500 across both Double-A and Triple-A. The Angels immediately brought him into their pipeline by signing him to a MiLB deal and he will be reporting to Double-A Rocket City for now. The 26-year-old is a left-handed hitter (he throws lefty as well) who plays both first base and corner outfield.

Angels make a 0 downside, all upside signing of former top international prospect

After signing out of Cuba in 2022 (he spent some time in Japan as well), Colás piqued in Double-A Birmingham that year with a .306/.364/.563/.927 slash line and hit 14 home runs. From 2023 to 2024, Colás slashed .223/.271/.309/.580 in the big leagues with five home runs and a putrid 81:16 K:BB and lost a lot of his shine. He was borderline unplayable for the White Sox affiliates this season, so they cut bait with Colás instead of holding out hope that he could play his way back onto their 40-man roster.

It will remain unclear how many other organizations were interested in bringing in Colás as a reclamation project, but he will likely become a priority prospect for the Halos. As fans are seeing with Moncada, the door is never shut permanently on marquee talents who played for the lowly White Sox. It's a good bet that once those players depart that franchise, they rediscover their love for the game, confidence and playing ability. For the Trash Pandas, Colás will likely split time at first base alongside Sam Brown -- thus eating into Sonny DiChiara's playing time (at both 1B and DH). In a corner outfield spot, Colás will likely supplant David Calabrese's in-game reps.

At 26-years-old, Colás is definitely too old for Double-A. So, if he gets promoted to Triple-A Salt Lake he could take some reps away from Tucker Flint and Korey Holland in the outfield...as the two are not exactly priority guys. There are even first base opportunities there now that Ryan Noda was just designated for assignment and shipped off to Boston's Triple-A affiliate. Inserting Colás into a hitter's paradise like the Pacific Coast League could reap both the prospect and organization many rewards.

If Colás performs well for the Halos' minor league teams, that's fantastic! If he does not develop whatsoever, it's no skin off the Angels' back. It's a savvy move to bring him in, as it costs the organization absolutely nothing and there is absolutely a scenario where Colás thrives once more.

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