ANAHEIM, Calif. _ The Angels on Thursday picked two high-ceiling athletes and another polished college starter with their final picks of MLB's shortened amateur player draft.
They used their fifth-round pick on Long Beach State's Adam Seminaris, a left-hander from Chino Hills who struck out 36 and walked one in 22 innings before the COVID-19 pandemic ended his junior season. He had a 3.58 ERA in 173 2/3 innings in his college career.
Baseball America praised Seminaris' pitch arsenal (curveball, low-90s fastball, changeup and slurve) and added he "dominates with a feel to pitch so elite that one evaluator compared it to Tom Glavine's."
The Angels took high school shortstop Werner Blakely in the fourth round, 111th overall, from Edison Public School Academy in Detroit. Although some scouts may question his readiness, amateur scouting director Matt Swanson did not think Blakely's talent should be considered "raw."
Swanson said Blakely, 6 feet 3 and 180 pounds, flaunted a level of athleticism that reminded him of Angels top prospect Jo Adell.
The Angels used their third-round selection on outfielder David Calabrese from St. Elizabeth Catholic High in Ontario, Canada. The 17-year-old was widely considered the best Canadian prospect available in the draft. He ran a 60-yard dash in 6.47 seconds and showed impressive range in center field at a Fenway Park showcase event last fall.
Calabrese, 5-10 and 160 pounds, is committed to Arkansas. If he is swayed to begin his professional career, he will join a farm system that already has nine outfielders among its top 30 prospects, according to Baseball America.
The Angels were allocated a bonus pool of about $6.4 million to sign their four draftees, including first-rounder Reid Detmers. Swanson said in a post-draft conference call he expects all players will come to agreement with the Angels by the Aug. 1 deadline.
The Angels will have another chance to bolster their farm system Sunday. That is when teams can begin signing an unlimited number of undrafted free agents for no more than $20,000 each.
