Seemingly a throw-in to the Huston Street deal, former Padres prospect Trevor Gott could be in the mix to be a big part of the Angels bullpen in the very near future.
Trevor Gott
10 words or less: The throw-in that’s not just a throw-in.
Position: RP Born: 8/26/1992
Bats: R Throws: R
Height: 6’0″ Weight: 190
2014 Rank: Unranked (in Padres system)
2014 Season Stats
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PITCHING
Fastball – B+. When Trevor Gott was with the Padres, he was throwing 91-93 with his fastball and relying on the tailing and diving movement of the pitch for success. Judging by the numbers, I’d say that was a pretty good choice. Upon being included in the deal that sent a bounty of prospects to the Padres in return for Huston Street, something amazing happened. He was sent to the Angels Double-A Arkansas affiliate, and showed up throwing 94-95 and even touching 98 on the radar gun. All with the same movement that made this pitch so impossible to square up before. I can’t say for sure whether Gott was simply pumped, or if this is his progression as a pitcher, but in either case, Gott’s fastball is quite good, even for a reliever in an industry full of pitchers that can throw hard.
Off-speed Pitches – B-. As a reliever, Gott really only needs one off-speed offering to keep hitters honest and potentially put them away (if his darting fastball doesn’t do the trick). Gott has what I’d consider an average slider that grades out as above average because of Gott’s ability to use it in the right situations and throw it for a strike. He also has a change up that is primarily used against LHB that’s a work in progress, though admittedly he falls in love with it a bit versus opposite hand hitters. The key thing to take away from this however, is that Gott’s off-speed pitches are good enough to play off his fastball and get hitters out.
Control – B. Relievers generally are pretty weak in this area, so the fact that Gott is average makes this grade play up. Jerry Dipoto is of the thought that relievers don’t have a lot of batters to face and often don’t have much wiggle room. They need to be able to throw strikes immediately, when it counts. This is in stark contrast to his predecessors who would often chase the Jepsen-types who can throw in the mid-90’s and hope they figure out where it’s going. Gott attacks the strike zone in a very no-nonsense way. He comes right after the hitters.
Command – C. He’s pretty average for a reliever in this department. Despite remaining in the strike zone, it’s normal to see him miss by a couple of inches, but I think that comes with the territory in having a fastball that moves like his does. Just ask Garrett Richards. I think his command of his off-speed pitches is actually better than his fastball, which is a little surprising.
Mechanics – B. Gott’s mechanics work as a reliever, and that’s what counts. He has a very fast, amped up motion toward the plate, similar to Troy Percival. But his arm-slot, landing point and effort all remain consistent. He has a three-quarters release for all three of his pitches.
OVERALL
Performance – A. Heading into the Cal League, Gott’s task as a first year professional was to try and keep hitters from reaching base and driving the ball out of the park in this hitter’s haven. Gott was able to do that within reason and earned a promotion to AA or the Padres, where he just wasn’t able to find the strike zone. He was dealt to the Angels and immediately began throwing harder and throwing strikes. Dipoto has said repeatedly that Gott is in the running for a bullpen spot with the Angels this season. Not bad after his first full year as a professional.
Projection – C+. Gott was a closer all through the minors with the Padres, and the Angels see him in a similar capacity. Though they already have a collection of relievers that can do that job (Street, Smith, Morin, Pestano, Bedrosian), Gott should be able to add his name to the mix. To me, Gott projects to be a very good 7th or 8th inning option for the Angels in the future.
Estimated Time of Arrival – 2015/16. Trevor will likely fulfill his dream of making it to the Major Leagues at some point in the upcoming season. As far as him sticking in the rotation, I figure if he keeps it up, it’ll happen later this season or early in 2016.
Grade as a Prospect – C+. Generally relievers shouldn’t be graded out as anything above a “C” because they’re so replaceable. But Gott, his fastball, movement, control and proximity to the majors make him one of the better relief prospects in the minors right now. Fortunately for the Angels, he’s just one cog in a huge collection of relievers they have. But there’s no reason Trevor Gott won’t be a big leaguer.
2014 in Review*
2014 was actually Trevor Gott’s first full season of pro ball. As you can see, he has just shot right up the minor league ladder as he logged half a season in Double-A. Of course, he started in the Padres system before he was acquired in the Huston Street deal. The random reliever throw-in on a trade seems to be something of a Dipoto specialty. Clearly there was something there he liked that he thought San Diego might have been undervaluing. Judging by Gott’s sudden spike in velocity upon jumping to the Halos, that was pretty clearly the case.
Gott’s numbers were good, but not particularly special. In High-A, Gott did a good job limiting walks, but his strikeout rate wasn’t the kind you usually see from high-end relievers in the low minors. Upon jumping to Double-A, that good-but-not-great strikeout rate held up, but his walks spiked. That looks to be more of a small sample size issue as he really just had one bad week that skewed his results.
The Angels obviously weren’t put off by that blip, as they sent him off to the Arizona Fall League, though that might’ve just been them wanting to get more of a look at him.
Looking Ahead*
Trevor Gott may not quite be at the level where he could be considered a closer of the future, but rather a utilitarian setup man type. He lacks the double-digit strikeout rate to push him to that elite closer class, but he does a lot of other things well. His groundball rate is solid, he keeps the ball in the park and he is actually better against lefties than righties. If he can just keep his walk rate in check, he has a real chance of being a setup man or a middle reliever that can be used in just about every situation. He could even get a shot at doing a little bit of that in the majors this year.
*As we do every year, the scouting reports and grades are provided by Scotty Allen while Garrett Wilson provides the 2014 in Review and Looking Ahead sections.
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