This story was excerpted from Rhett Bollinger’s Angels Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
SEATTLE -- The Angels will be sending eight prospects to the Arizona Fall League this year, including four pitchers and catcher Juan Flores, who is ranked as the club’s No. 18 prospect by MLB Pipeline.
Flores is the lone player ranked among the club’s Top 30 prospects who will be playing for the Salt River Rafters along with prospects from the D-backs, Rockies, Red Sox and Pirates. He’s joined by right-handers Ryan Costeiu, Brandon Dufault, Fulton Lockhart and Victor Najer, lefty Will Gervase, infielder David Mershon and outfielder Raudi Rodriguez. It’s the second straight Arizona Fall League for both Dufault and Mershon.
Angels interim manager Ray Montgomery, who also has spent several years in player development and scouting, said he believes the Arizona Fall League is an important avenue for prospects to show off what they have against similarly highly regarded Minor Leaguers.
“When it first started, it was like a finishing school,” Montgomery said. “And if you played in that, you were imminently going to play in the big leagues, probably the next year. You'd go there to file down some rough edges on some things you needed to work on before you came here.
“I think now you get a combination of guys who've even played here and go there to go back and do some of those things. So, yeah, it's an honor. I still think it's a league that, you know, stands above the rest in terms of prospects to go and highlight what they can do.”
More on the Arizona Fall League:
• Complete coverage | Top 100 prospects on rosters | Tickets | Shop | Highlights and interviews
Flores, just 19, is coming off an up and down season with High-A Tri-City, hitting .207/.283/.341 with 10 homers, 11 doubles and 40 RBIs in 89 games. But he was still young for the league, as he was more than three years younger than the average competition.
Flores is considered a strong defender with a plus-arm and initially joined the organization as part of the 2023 international signing class, receiving a $280,000 bonus. The 5-foot-10, 215-pounder has power but needs to refine his approach and be more selective at the plate.
The Angels believe the Arizona Fall League will be a good experience for him, and Montgomery also urged players to consider playing Winter Ball in the offseason as well. Flores has yet to play in Winter Ball because of his inexperience, but the Arizona Fall League will be his first foray into getting some extra work in after the regular season.
“Any time you keep playing is a good thing,” Montgomery said. “One of the things that's gone on in the game recently is guys don't play in the winter like they should. And with the Latin American players, they play all winter. It's a huge advantage.”