The Los Angeles Angels haven’t had much luck getting some of their minor leaguers to the show successfully, but they sure are showing out in the WBC.
The names may not be very familiar, but outfielder Lucas Ramirez is making an impact for Team Brazil to go with that of Najer Victor for Team Great Britain, joining Angels pitching prospect Sam Aldegheri as he struck out eight in leading Team Italy to victory.
Kurt Suzuki is thrilled by this, and he was happy to talk up all three in a piece written by Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com.
“We’ve got a lot of players and pitchers that nobody was talking about with a lot of ability to put themselves on the map,” manager Kurt Suzuki said. “I know Aldegheri has already been in the big leagues, but a guy like Victor, nobody talks about him. And same with Ramirez. These are young guys with a lot of ability, and they’ve shown it.”
Ramirez is actually the son of former slugger Manny Ramirez, which puts his home run binge against the likes of Jacob deGrom, Logan Webb and Gabe Speier in a slightly different context. Victor, meanwhile, struck out Aaron Judge, Bryce Harper and Gunnar Henderson in the fourth inning for Team Great Britain.
Ramirez was a 17th-round draft pick in the 2024 draft, but he seems to have found something in camp this season. He homered in an exhibition game against the Texas Rangers on Wednesday, then did it again against Webb and Speier.
That’s pretty heady stuff for a player who had success in the Arizona Complex League last year with a slash line of 282/.374/.454 with three homers, seven doubles and 28 RBIs in 49 games. He’s only played 11 games in High-A, but Suzuki believes in the talent, and perhaps the lineage as well.
“I know he’s playing really well right now, and just watching him go about his work, whether it’s the outfield drills, batting practice, live BPs, you can see the talent in there,” Suzuki said. “For me, just watching the way he moves and everything, I feel he’s going to be a great player.”
Aledgheri’s story is familiar to Angels fans, but his performance for Team Italy is an encouraging new development. Suzuki commented that the pitcher looks to be in great shape and throwing well, and a lot of it is “just getting more comfortable as a young player.”
Victor’s performance is even more surprising than that of Ramirez. He was selected in the 14th round coming out of the draft, and he had a 4.87 ERA across Single-A and High-A last year. He made his mark against Team USA, striking out outfielder Roman Anthony after pitching a scoreless fourth inning for the UK.