Angels select Huntington Beach local Jared Grindlinger with 12th-overall pick

ANAHEIM, Calif. – In the first draft under interim general manager John Mozeliak, the Los Angeles Angels selected two-way star Jared Grindlinger out of Huntington Beach High School. 

For Grindlinger, a local product who grew up an Angels fan and whose uncle even has season tickets behind the third base dugout at the Big A, going so high in the first round is the culmination of years of hard work and a risk he took on himself to reclassify as a senior in high school this past year to get even closer to the next phase of his development. 

"This was kind of the dream always," Grindlinger said. "At that time, when I started to reclass, there'd be some worries here and there after the process, like 'okay, was it the right decision?' [I] stayed confident with it, stayed true to it and I feel like it paid off great."

Grindlinger turned 17-years-old in April, a result of him reclassifying as a senior, but his youth doesn't mean he isn't ready to take on the challenge of Major League Baseball. 

How Grindlinger profiles

He was a two-way player in high school, pitching as well as hitting and playing outfield, and while the Angels officially drafted him as an outfielder, he won't rule out playing both if asked by the Angels, but ultimately he's just ready to compete anyway that he can. 

As a hitter, Grindlinger might not have the most power in the world, but his swing is quick and far-reaching while his discipline in the zone meant in his senior season that he wasn't going to let any pitchers facing him off easy.

"I definitely say I'm a hard out. I feel like I'm gonna make the guys work. I'm not gonna swing and miss or chase a whole lot," Grindlinger said. "I'm gonna stay in my approach, let them come to me and they're gonna have to throw their best stuff in the zone for them to get me out."

A new direction for Angels?

Picking a high school player so high, especially one as young as Grindlinger, is certainly a departure from the Angels' approach to the draft in recent years, where picking college-age talent that could be called up quickly was the norm. 

It's evident of Mozeliak's mentality at the helm of the front office to find the best talent he felt there was at that point in the draft and invest in developing said talent. 

Any debut from Grindlinger at the Major League level will be years out, giving him ample time to develop even more, both skill-wise and physically, into a player the Angels can hang their hopes on. 

For now, Grindlinger can look forward to a future playing for an organization that he grew up watching, and the Angels can look forward to the young talent they've acquired who, despite his age, takes competing and wining as seriously as they come. 

"Growing up in a household of two older brothers… If you lose a game, you're getting in a fight," Grindlinger said."It's always been just uber-competitive. So that's definitely what I'm ready for."