Prospect guru eviscerating top Angels prospect seems incredibly off base

It's easy to dump on Los Angeles Angels prospects. The team has been woefully inept at developing young talent and often cheaps out on talent acquisition, targeting underslot players in the draft and signing international prospects who take lower bonuses.

With that being said, it's not as if the Angels are completely devoid of having some intriguing prospects. One of which is catching prospect and 2025 top international signee Gabriel Davalillo. Davalillo was on display in the Angels' Spring Breakout Game, and the reaction he drew from noted prospect analyst Keith Law was a wild one.

"Third baseman Gabriel Davalillo was 19th on my list … and that was too high. I said at the time he had “a thicker body,” and he’s gotten bigger since then. He’s 18 years old and is already too heavy to play anywhere on the field. I’m not sure what you do with a player like that — unless he’s Tony Gwynn with the stick, he’s not a prospect," Law remarked.

Angels fans shouldn't put much stock in Keith Law's teardown of top prospect Gabriel Davalillo

Law has credentials working as an MLB scout and in front offices before, but he's also known for his contrarian takes. He seems to like going against the grain and ruffling feathers at times, and while he's not always wrong, he's not always right either.

But to rip apart a youngster who many hold in high regard seems more than a little off base. Davalillo is just 18 years old, was one of the top players in his international signing class, and has performed well in his limited action so far.

Last year in the Dominican Summer League, he slashed an impressive .302/.408/.518 with seven homers over 41 games. In that time, he recorded 23 walks against only 21 strikeouts. His advanced approach at the plate, which was on display there, has him ranked as the Halos' No. 6 overall prospect by MLB Pipeline.

In addition, Baseball America (subscription required) ranked him as one of the top-35 prospects in the DSL in 2025, hitters and pitchers included. In fact, Davalillo ranked near the top of the list, coming in at No. 11.

Listed at 5'10, 210 pounds, Davalillo is a bigger-bodied catcher, and that carries some cause for concern with regard to his ability to stick behind the plate long term. With that being said, there are some who, while not dismissing the weight concerns entirely, are impressed with his arm strength and agility back there.

The weight is the main concern that Law expresses while completely glossing over the fact that Davalillo has the complete suite of offensive tools. Let's be real for a second, though, he'd hardly be the first catching prospect to outgrow the position. When it comes to teenage position players, an overwhelming majority of them start out at three positions: catcher, shortstop, and center field. As they get older, they either prove they can stick or get moved elsewhere that's better suited for how their bodies have developed.

Why is this? Well, the best athletes, and in turn the best young players coming up, almost always play one of these three positions.

Law's comment about having to be Tony Gwynn in order to justify his prospect status seems totally unfair. Davalillo has gotten some work in at third base and could potentially shift over to first base in the future. Even if he's only a DH, he's a special talent offensively.

Most importantly, Davalillo was almost unanimously regarded as a top prospect in his class, is still a teenager, and hasn't even arrived stateside yet. Meanwhile, from what we have seen from him, all he's done is hit. Seems weird to dog a kid who has done nothing to show that he'll do anything but succeed in this very early juncture of his career. Worry about the weight when it proves to become an issue, but for now, all indications are that Davalillo will be a stud.