The Angels are going to select the contract of outfielder Aaron Whitefield, according to Darren Wolfson of Skor North. A corresponding move will be required to open up a spot for Whitefield on the roster.
Whitefield, 25, was signed out of Brisbane, Australia by the Twins in 2015. His best asset has long been his speed, which he has used to provide excellent outfield defense, primarily in center, as well as stealing bases. Baseball America put him in the back half of their lists of top 30 Minnesota prospects in both 2018 and 2019.
In 2020, he was called up to the big leagues and got a three-game cup of coffee, often as a pinch runner/defensive replacement, only getting a single plate appearance. (He grounded out.) He was outrighted in August and then spent 2021 in Double-A. He hit a modest .257/.327/.353, 84 wRC+, with a 24.8% strikeout rate, 9.3% walk rate and 36 stolen bases.
He reached free agency at the end of the year and signed a minors deal with the Angels. He’s started this year with the Double-A Rocket City Trash Pandas and is off to a great start. In 111 plate appearances over 24 games, he’s hitting .301/.400/.538, increasing his walk rate to 14.4%. That amounts to a wRC+ of 149, or 49% better than league average. He’s also still got the wheels, notching 13 stolen bases in those 24 games.
The Angels will now add a player to their roster that comes with a high floor. As the old saying goes, speed doesn’t slump. Whitefield should be able to provide excellent speed and defense in any scenario. With his bat seemingly taking a step forward so far this year, there’s also the potential for Whitefield to be even more valuable, should he able to carry any of that up to the majors with him. The club has a solid everyday group in the outfield, with Mike Trout, Brandon Marsh and Taylor Ward all playing very well so far this season. However, with the recent demotion of Jo Adell, there’s room for Whitefield to be a fourth outfielder, coming off the bench as a pinch runner or giving any of that trio the occasional day off.
Don’t think Dylan Bundy and Luis Arraez are on the Angels
The first paragraph identifies the team that’s calling Whitefield up, but then is otherwise about the roster and IL status of the team that Whitefield played for two years ago.
Twins?
Twins.
Angels.
The initial write up is a mashup of two teams.
“Angels…rister has a couple of vacancies with Bundy and Arraez on the covid IL” Cmon now who edited this..
This article is drunk
How does Arraez and Bundy going on the Covid list affect the Angels exactly?
Quick on the fly edits can’t conceal how sloppy this article was when it first dropped, as several other astute readers noted. The Angels. Twins. 2 separate organizations.
Do they run the bases clockwise in Australia?
Nah mate, we do it normally, I think…
Why on the green Earth not Trey Cabbage? Mr. 1.250 OPS?
Edit: Ahh he’s a bench option, while Cabbage needs consistent ABs somewhere.
Isn’t this the type of player you bring up in September and carry into the postseason?
What in the world is a trash panda?? Out Timber Rattlers team changes it’s name to Udder Tuggers as a nod to the dairy industry, but trash panda is out there
A city racoon
Raccoon
My fear is Maddon needs another player to generate a unique lineup and another reason to platoon Marsh.
Marsh hasn’t exactly been rocking LHP
It doesn’t matter. You have to let young players grow. And you certainly don’t platoon him with a guy who can’t hit.
You don’t platoon Walsh either.
Maddon started off the season platooning Adell with Rojas and Marsh with Duffy.
Love it! Maddon can have infinitely more lineups! Love watching 11’s brain explode once again.
Please DFA Mike Myers
He’s another relief guy i wasn’t crazy about, but if you look at his stats this year he’s only had two bad outings and hasnt had any of the four batters he’s inherited on base score.. so, ya know, he’s doing his job.
He’s the fifth man in the pen. We’d be in trouble if he was our 8th inning RP….see 2021.
@angelsfan4life Why? He had one bad game, his first game. The 2nd game he gave up a wind aided home run to Jazz Chisholm that would have been a routine flyball on most days. His past 9 appearances, he gave up one run in 10 innings.
He was one of the Angels best reliever options last year. Once the Angels got rid of the crap in the rotation, Quinana, Heaney, Canning, Bundy and the relievers only had to work 4 innings a night rather than 6 or 8, he had 2.78 ERA in the 2nd half.
I don’t see him going anywhere.
Angels have a lot of speed. They have six players between 28.2 and 29.7 feet per second according to Statcast’s Sprint Speed. Adell and Trout top the Angels at 29.7 and 29.6, respectively. More surprising was that Ward averages 28.2 feet per second. That’s just a hair behind Wade, Marsh and Velasquez at 28.5, 28.6 and 28.7.
I am surprised Velazquez moves that fast from the on deck circle to batting box to the dugout.
Stefanic needs to come up, he gets on base.
1.Stefanic
2.Ohtani
3.Ward
4.Trout
5.Walsh
6.Rendone
7.Stassi
8.Marsh/other OF player
9. Fletcher
Lineup will be really deep.
#MakeAngelsGreatAgain
Sick of the carousel of lineups from Madden. Sick of defense first no hit dudes being called up when they are never going to hit major league pitching. IE Velasquez. And what is the fascination with Jimmy Herget? This guy stinks.
Huh? His first game was his worst, and he hasn’t done badly since.. Only three runs given up since, although it looks like he had three other inherited runs scored but I havent found out when in a quick scan.
Good grief your 18-10 Relax
I agree.
Stefanic can help win games by contributing with his bat. Not like these other Bozos that have “defense”. I bet Stefanic has the same arm and will commit same amount of errors as Velasquez and wade.
He’s being introduced to his playoff teammates. Our 2022 version of 2002 Chone Figgins