The Angels’ draft took a familiar turn after their first-round pick, and not just because they went with a high school bat-arm combo in Jared Grindlinger out of Huntinton Beach High School.
Once the first round was in the books, Los Angeles leaned into a family theme. The club added Jaxon Willits and Jack Salmon, two names that should ring a bell for longtime Angels fans.
Willits is the son of Reggie Willits, who spent six seasons with the Angels from 2006-2011, according to Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com. Salmon is the son of Tim Salmon, the team’s Hall of Famer and current broadcaster.
Angels scouting director Tim McIlvaine defended both selections, starting with Willits, the No. 117 prospect.
“It's the makeup with him too,” McIlvaine said of Willits, who is the No. 117 prospect. “The dude is a winner.
He's a great makeup guy. It started probably with his dad who was an Angel as well.
His brother Eli went 1-1 last year, but Jaxon is a guy we've watched for years and he just seems to win. And I love that piece of it.”
Willits backed that up with a strong season at Oklahoma, where he hit .313/.407/.515 with seven homers, six stolen bases and 55 RBIs in 64 games. He also turned heads at the College World Series, batting .500 with one home run, four doubles and seven RBIs.
Salmon’s college path ran through Golden West College, Hawaii and UNLV, and his senior year at UNLV gave the Angels more to like. The 22-year-old hit .344/.485/.481 with three homers, 10 doubles and 32 RBIs in 49 games.
McIlvaine pointed to tools and versatility when explaining that pick.
“He’s got tools, man,” McIlvaine said. “He's physical, he's got some raw power, he can run, a great clubhouse guy.
We did our work on him, we had him out here at the stadium to hit and he hit some balls in the seats. Played center field, we'll bounce him around the outfield a little bit, get some versatility there.”
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