Third base has been a sore spot for the Angels for a long time, and the roster still looks like it needs a real answer there before Jake Munroe is ready to take over.
The position has never quite been the same since Chone Figgins followed Troy Glaus. Glaus brought power.
Figgins brought chaos on the bases. The Angels have spent years trying to find something that stacks up to either version, and they still haven’t really replaced what those two gave them.
David Freese came the closest in the years that followed. By the standards of that earlier pair, he was seen as a disappointment.
But over the last decade, the Angels would have taken that kind of production in a heartbeat. The former Cardinal posted 4.5 bWAR across two seasons, along with a .322 on-base percentage and a 106 OPS+.
Last season only reinforced how badly the Angels need help at the hot corner. Yoan Moncada opened the year there and hit just .189/.308/.297. Denzer Guzman handled the position in the back half and finished with -0.7 bWAR, hurt by shaky defense and weak offense.
That makes third base one of the clearest holes on the roster, and it is hard to imagine the Angels being competitive without fixing it. The encouraging part is that, for once, there may be a long-term answer in the upper minors.
Jake Munroe has forced his way into the conversation. He got rolling in High A, then put together an absurd on-base streak at AA. What started as a hot week became a hot month, then a blazing summer, and it was enough to earn him Baseball America’s Angels Prospect of the Year honor.
He kept it going after that. Munroe was sent to the Arizona Fall League, where he is facing some of the best prospects in the sport, and he has opened with a strong start.
In his first 10 at bats for the Mesa Solar Sox, he reached base five times. By the eye test, he looks like a player with the bat speed and athleticism to stand up to top-tier competition.
The numbers back up the buzz. Munroe logged 289 plate appearances at AA and hit .315/.412/.491. Add in the quick adjustment in the AFL, and it becomes a lot easier to see why the Angels are starting to think about him as their future third baseman.
Still, the club has to handle him the right way. Rebuilds take time, and the Angels can’t afford to rush another prospect before he is ready.
Munroe has earned a spot in big league camp in Tempe, where he will wear the Angels uniform and get a look in early Cactus League games. But it would be better for both him and the team if he is not forced into the Opening Day job.
That is where Edmundo Sosa fits. He gives the Angels a reliable stopgap at third base and adds value in left field as well.
He is a high-contact hitter who does not walk much, and his career wRC+ sits at 97, just below league average. Defensively, he was credited with five outs above average at third base in only 23 games, which is a strong mark.
Sosa is heading into his age-31 season, does not bring much power, and likely profiles as a shorter-term addition. His versatility could also make it easier to shift him into more of a utility role if Munroe forces the issue. For an Angels team that has seen payroll fall off a cliff over the last two seasons, that kind of fit matters.
The ideal setup is pretty clear: Sosa buys time, Munroe keeps developing, and the Angels avoid rushing their top young third baseman before he is truly ready. Munroe has a chance to hit his way onto the roster anyway, but the club does not need to hand him the job on day one.
The Angels need a bridge to Munroe. How long of a bridge is still to be determined. Edmundo Sosa would both improve the Angels next year and be the perfect bridge to the next era of Angels baseball.
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