World Baseball Classic reveals the Angels’ farm system isn't as bad as we thought

The 2026 farm system rankings are out, and guess who is at the bottom again? The Los Angeles Angels rank 28th out of 30 teams, which, while not dead last, continues their trend of ranking no better than 27th in recent years.

The general consensus is that the Angels lack both high-end talent and adequate depth to put forth a respectable system. Their scouting has been suspect, the drafting has been questionable, and the player development has been nonexistent. At least, that's what we've been led to believe.

While the hit rate isn't quite what you'd want, we have seen some hits come out of the farm. Zach Neto has been a major win. Nolan Schanuel is a quality big leaguer. Jose Soriano is a solid starting pitcher. That's not enough to offset all the busts, but it's something.

With the World Baseball Classic underway, we might need to adjust our perception of the Halos' pipeline, however. A handful of Los Angeles farmhands are participating in the tournament, and they're showing out in surprising ways. Three names in particular have caught the world's attention: Sam Aldegheri, Lucas Ramirez, and Najer Victor.

Three Angels prospects has outperformed expectations in the WBC

Sam Aldegheri was a top-five prospect in the Angels' system going into last season, but in baffling fashion, the club decided to use him and fellow former top pitching prospect Caden Dana as sacrificial lambs. The pair got called up to take beatings and provide length when the bullpen was burned out, and then would be immediately sent back down to the minors.

It was an astonishingly poor way to treat young arms with legitimate potential, and it's no surprise that struggles ensued. However, the 24-year-old lefty took the mound for Italy against Brazil and shined. He twirled 4⅔ shutout innings with eight strikeouts, one walk, and two hits. He was removed once he reached the 65 pitch limit. Now, he might use that performance to steal a job in the big league rotation.

Speaking of Brazil, little-known Angels prospect Lucas Ramirez's biggest claim to fame before the tournament was being the son of legendary slugger Manny Ramirez. Not anymore. The 20-year-old was a 2024 17th-round pick by Los Angeles and posted a pedestrian .266/.356/.417 line between the Arizona Complex League and High-A Tri-City in his pro debut last season.

Now, he's the youngest player in WBC history to have a multi-homer game, cracking two dingers against the Team USA juggernaut. Both blasts well exceeded 100 miles per hour off the bat. He'll enter the season outside of LA's top-30, but maybe that won't be the case for long.

Finally, relief-only prospects rarely get love, and that's certainly the case for 24-year-old Najer Victor. A 4.87 ERA in 2025 between Inland Empire and Tri-City didn't put him on any radars, but his appearance for Great Britain in the WBC did. There, his fastball averaged 96.9 miles per hour, and his slider generated seven whiffs on eleven swings. Despite his age, he's relatively inexperienced with just 48⅔ minor league innings pitched in total.

Small sample size caveats apply to all of these performances, of course, but there are some legitimate reasons to be excited. For Aldegheri, it's a reminder that he was once a top prospect, and a sign that he should be taken seriously again.

For the other two, this is a massive leap in competition from the lower-minors foes they're accustomed to facing. Not only looking like they belong alongside the best in the world, but authoring dominant moments is encouraging. These three will be prospects to keep an eye on in 2026.