Two Angels prospects with major-league experience - Class AAA catcher Bobby Wilson and infielder Sean Rodriguez - are candidates to be the player to be named in the Scott Kazmir trade, major-league sources say.
How about a comparison of these two to hold us over?
Wilson is a 26-year-old catcher struggling in Triple-A with a .271/.314/.399 line. In previous year he's hit well, but let's be honest here: Wilson isn't a prospect and hasn't been a worthwhile prospect in a while. Does he have a major league future? Probably, but in the "He's a back-up" sort of way, he doesn't have much of a platoon split for hitting lefties (.805 OPS in his minor league career) and he's only so-so against righties. Given that his numbers have came in parks where guys like Brandon Wood and Dallas McPherson have scorched Earth, it's safe to say Wilson isn't making it to the majors because of his bat.
Rodriguez is a 24-year-old do-it-all. He plays shortstop, second, the outfield, so on. His numbers in Triple-A this season are absolutely jaw-dropping: .301/.402/.622 and the scouting reports aren't too mean on him either. Baseball America ranked him as one of the Angels top 10 prospects prior to the 2008 season and other than 216 major league plate appearances, he'd probably be ranked near the top still. He does have some issues with strikeouts, and he may or may not be a starter in the bigs, but he's a better player than Wilson without doubt.
As for how either player fits into the 2010 roster matrix. You'd have to peg Wilson as a back-up catcher, probably not much better than options like Shawn Riggans. Rodriguez would fill the 2009 pre-season Ben Zobrist role.
I can alert everyone that we've talked to multiple sources within baseball who have identified Rodriguez as the player to be named later, but as of now, have yet to receive a confirmation from either team. It's not official, but it would be a stunner if Rodriguez isn't the third man heading to St. Petersburg.