A surprise 13th-round pick ignites hope for the struggling Angels. Can Xavier Mitchell deliver a 2026 breakout and turn their fortunes around?
The Los Angeles have been stuck near the bottom of the standings for the better part of a decade now. Losing 90 games in 2025, the Halos are once again trying to retool their roster to get back to playing competitive baseball.
It won’t happen overnight, however. Even with the aggressive moves being made this offseason by general manager Perry Minasian under first-time manager Kurt Suzuki, the Angels don’t look to be anything more than an average team at best.
With this knowledge, building a priming foundation in its farm system is key. The Angels organization hasn’t seemed to realize this, however, as they have one of the worst-ranked systems in all of baseball. After a decade of losing baseball, one would expect the club to have a deep bag of top prospects to choose from to change the outlook of this team. It’s not the case right now, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t a few intriguing names in the Angels’ organization that could find their way onto a big league roster.
In a recent Bleacher Report article, Joel Reuter predicted the prospect from each organization who is most likely to breakout in 2026. For the Halos, Reuter selected left-handed pitcher Xavier Mitchell.
The Angels selected Mitchell in the 13th round of the draft this past summer, convincing the 19-year-old to skip out on his commitment to the University of Texas and begin his journey in professional baseball.
“He already touches 94 with his fastball, has a projectable 6'3", 165-pound frame, and throws a ton of strikes,” Reuter wrote of Mitchell. “If not for shoulder fatigue cutting short his senior season, he would have been off the draft board much sooner.”
Mitchell impressed after pitching for the U.S. under-18 national team in 2024. He followed that up by continuing his stretch into his senior season at Prestonwood Christian before shutting down early due to shoulder fatigue. This may have benefited the Angels, who were able to land the southpaw all the way in the 13th round. He's currently ranked as the club's 21st best prospect.
He’s not expected to be at an MLB level for a few seasons as he continues to build out his frame and work on solidifying his changeup as a legitimate third option. Mitchell will do so in rookie ball next season, and if he picks up where he left off during his senior season, the Angels may have found themselves with a top pitching prospect.