Angels may have found their Zach Neto replacement in breakout prospect Jake Munroe

There is real reason to believe that Zach Neto's days with the Los Angeles Angels may be coming to an end soon. With an entirely new regime being installed as we speak at the top, in addition to Neto's frustrating inconsistency, it feels like Neto's value could be higher to another team in the near future while the Angels navigate their current (and probably total) restructuring. If we are honest with ourselves, Neto's late-season surge probably only means that his already substantial asking price is going up a bit.

But where does that leave the Angels? New owner Stan Kroenke and new front office head (probably) John Mozeliak seem keen on getting LA back to being competitive sooner rather than later. If you think that replacing Neto with a more consistent free-agent infield bat that can actually play defense is the answer, you may want to look at the upcoming free-agent class and brace for disappointment.

Thankfully, the Angels may actually have an internal solution that isn't the enigmatic Vaughn Grissom or Christian Moore. Very quietly, Angels third-base prospect Jake Munroe has inserted himself into the conversation as a potential lineup replacement for Neto as soon as next season.

Jake Munroe is playing his way into very real consideration for an Angels call-up at some point in 2027

Save your angry emails, because we know that Neto is playing shortstop and that Munroe is a third baseman. The idea here is that Munroe getting called up would allow Denzer Guzman (or someone else, for that matter) to play shortstop. This is about adding real infield depth, not getting hung up on specific positions.

Munroe looks like a pretty unassuming prospect on the surface. MLB Pipeline only has him ranked 20th in an Angels farm system that isn't exactly renowned for its depth, and he was a fairly nondescript fourth-round pick out of Louisville. However, looks are deceiving here, and Munroe is looking more and more like he could be a contributor at the big-league level.

After posting an .896 OPS with High-A Tri-City across 56 games, which was largely buoyed by a high on-base percentage, the Angels opted to challenge Munroe with a promotion to Double-A to see if his unique skill set would continue to play there. Munroe not only continued to perform well, but he actually improved with a stellar .320/.417/.491 line in 264 plate appearances at the new level. Translating Munroe's 18 homers this season to the majors might be asking a bit much, but he certainly has more pop than he was originally given credit for.

Now, is Munroe guaranteed to work out? Absolutely not, but that is not the point. The Angels need more prospect success stories if they are going to turn this thing around, and it isn't like Neto has done anywhere near enough to make himself untouchable. In fact, if the Angels believe in what Munroe is doing right now, Neto may be more expendable than ever.

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