The Angels are on the clock at No. 12 overall, and the mock draft industry keeps circling the same cluster of names. With the 2026 MLB Draft approaching, the first-round buzz around Los Angeles has settled into a debate between polished college bats, a high-upside prep talent, and a college arm with a starter’s full toolbox.
One of the most common links is Aiva Hacopian. Both Sports Illustrated and Yahoo have him going to the Angels, and it’s easy to see why.
He’s the kind of advanced hitter who can pile up doubles, came out of the SEC, and produced against the toughest competition in college baseball. The bat is the selling point here.
Hacopian hit .319/.405/.578 with 10 doubles and 11 home runs in just 195 plate appearances, while drawing 25 walks against 21 strikeouts. His hit tool is graded 60 and his power 55, so the expectation is that the bat will play in the majors.
The bigger question is where he ends up defensively, since he may need to move to the outfield.
Another name showing up in mock drafts is Derek Curiel, MLB.com’s projected pick for the Angels. Curiel’s path has been a little different.
He played high school ball at Orange Lutheran, entered 2024 as a highly regarded prospect, then saw his stock dip after a rough senior year. He went to LSU and worked his way right back into first-round consideration.
As a draft-eligible sophomore, he hit .349/.452/.522 in 126 games for LSU. Curiel is more contact than power, with a 60 hit tool and the range to stay in center field.
The power profile is lighter - more 10-15 home runs than big-time thump - but he should add doubles and solid defense.
Then there’s Justin Lebron, the upside play. Before SEC play, he looked like a lock to be gone long before No.
- But his bat cooled against the nation’s best conference, and that opened the door for other prospects to move ahead of him.
ESPN still has the Angels betting on the ceiling. Lebron’s defensive case is strong: he can stay at shortstop, with quick lateral movement, good range, and a plus arm.
He can run, too. The concern is the hit tool, which some evaluators grade at 40 to 45.
Still, if the Angels want to lean into defense and trust they can squeeze more offense out of him, he fits the conversation.
Baseball America’s Taylor Blake Ward has the Angels taking Liam Peterson, and that pick comes with a different kind of appeal. Peterson already has a starter’s arsenal: a plus-plus slider, a plus fastball, an above-average curveball, and an average changeup.
He doesn’t need to learn a new pitch. He needs better command and more consistency.
The results have been uneven, but the raw production is there - 111 strikeouts in 84.1 innings, with 36 walks and 11 home runs allowed. His fastball sits 95-96 MPH, and hitters whiffed on his slider more than half the time.
For an Angels system that already includes Tyler Bremner, George Klassen, Walbert Urena, and Caden Dana, Peterson would add another arm with real stuff.
There’s also a wild-card bat in Ace Reese. The Angels organization lacks power at every level, and Reese brings plenty of it.
He may be athletic enough to handle third base, but the bat is what makes him stand out. He has true 30-plus home run potential, barrels the ball well, and does come with some chase concerns.
Even so, he would project as the best bat in the Angels system by a wide margin.
With John Mozeliak leading the draft while taking input from Perry Minasian’s scouting group, the Angels are in a tricky spot. That has made the safer college options look especially appealing, and Peterson in particular checks a lot of boxes. But the mock draft field still leaves room for a hitter, and that’s where Hacopian, Curiel, Lebron, and Reese all stay in the mix.
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