Angels late-round selection in 2024 MLB Draft has family ties to former All-Star

The 2024 MLB Draft came to a close earlier this week and the Los Angeles Angels walked away with an inordinate number of new pitching prospects. Of the Halos' 21 picks in this year's draft, 14 were hurlers. Angels fans are hoping at least one or two of them actually turn into solid major league contributors.

The Angels took a college bat with their first-round pick in second baseman Christian Moore, but there was another position player taken several rounds later who has unique ties to a former All-Star player and two-time World Series champion with the Boston Red Sox.

With their 17th-round selection in the 2024 MLB Draft, the Angels picked Lucas Ramirez, a prep bat out of American Heritage School in Florida. If that last name sounds familiar, it's because Ramirez is the son of nine-time Silver Slugger Award-winner Manny Ramirez.

LA Angels late-round selection in 2024 MLB Draft is related to Manny Ramirez

Manny Ramirez spent 19 seasons in the big leagues and starred for both the Cleveland Guardians and Red Sox. The elder Ramirez also had a stint in Los Angeles with the Dodgers for two-plus seasons. Manny's last year in the bigs came in 2011 as a member of the Tampa Bay Rays.

Lucas Ramirez, like his father, is an outfielder by trade. The 6-foot-3, 205-pound left-handed hitter had been committed to play for the University of Tennessee next spring, but reports from Ben McKee of 247 Sports reveal that Ramirez is expected to sign with the Angels, forgoing his college commitment and instead opt to begin his professional career. Oddly enough, the Halos' first-round pick was part of the Tennessee Volunteers' roster last season.

Making the jump from high school to the pros is no easy task, and just being the son of a former major league All-Star is no guarantee that Ramirez will come anywhere close to putting up the type of numbers his father enjoyed during his career. But seeing the recent success of players like Fernando Tatis Jr. and Bobby Witt Jr. has to instill some measure of confidence into the Angels' fanbase, right?

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