Angels must hope AL West rival keeps foolishly ignoring slugging prospect

The American League West is feeling a little crowded at the moment -- in the early going the race for the division is truly wide open. However, after the Angels' blistering hot start, the team has cooled down a bit. At this early juncture in the season, teams can only look internally for solutions to help pull them apart from the pack. For the Angels, that will come in the form of an imminent Zach Neto return from the IL. For one of their chief rivals, the obvious answer is the call-up of a top prospect who is currently dominating Triple-A.

The Halos have a clear goal for their season. While they aren't true contenders, they are trying to play competitive baseball and develop their young core to the point that they can soon ascend to the stratosphere of the truly elite teams in the league. The Athletics, formerly of Oakland, don't seem to have the same urgency to win. If they did, they'd take a page out of the Angels' book and call up top prospect Nick Kurtz before the season slips through their fingers.

While the focus is always on midseason and the trade deadline for teams to make improvements and attempt to make a run down the stretch, wins in April and May count just as much as those in August and September. A team that is serious about competing would jump on the opportunity to promote a top prospect, who, despite limited minor league seasoning, has already proven himself ready for the big league challenge.

The Angels better hope the Athletics don't come to their senses regarding Nick Kurtz

The Athletics should have seen this coming. Kurtz, who was drafted No. 4 overall, was a clear gem coming out in the draft. The team gave him a whopping $7 million signing bonus after the Wake Forest product showed out his final year in college by showcasing an advanced feel for the strike zone, patience, contact prowess, and of course, immense power potential.

On the surface, calling up Kurtz would create a logjam. A first baseman by trade, Kurtz sees his path blocked at the position by 2020 first-round pick, 23-year-old Tyler Soderstrom, who is tearing the cover off the ball in the bigs as well.

The other option, designated hitter, is currently occupied by Brent Rooker. The A's, somewhat surprisingly, gave him a well-deserved extension earlier this offseason. However, there's a clear solution to this logistical problem.

The Athletics could easily shift Rooker to the outfield and send milquetoast journeyman Miguel Andujar to the bench. That would open the DH spot to then rotate through Kurtz and Soderstrom, with whoever isn't at DH taking the field at first base. Problem solved.

The Angels have caught significant flak for their consistent strategy of fast-tracking top prospects to the majors, however, it has often proved to be the right call. At the very least, it shows the team is more concerned with trying to win ball games than saving as much money as possible. Arte Moreno is no saint, but his sins are nowhere near the level of John Fisher's.

The Angels can only hope that this chief rival continues to overlook an obvious solution that would lead to more wins, and can laugh at the Athletics' ineptitude along the way.

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