The New York Mets have traded infielder Eduardo Escobar to the Los Angeles Angels in exchange for right-handed pitching prospects Coleman Crow and Landon Marceaux. The Mets ability to obtain these prospects was partially the result of the Mets paying the remainder of Escobar’s salary this season.
This trade was unexpected and came as a surprise to many. Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor was interviewed on Apple TV during the game against the Philadelphia Phillies. Lindor would say, “I just found out literally in the dugout. We’re gonna miss him a lot.” He went on to rave about Escobar as a teammate.
Crow, 22, was drafted by Billy Eppler when he was the then GM of the Angels. Coleman was selected in the 28th round of the 2019 draft out of Pike County High School in Zebulon, Georgia.
Crow did not make his debut until the 2021 season partially due to the COVID pandemic. He posted an ERA of over 4.00 in each of his first two professional seasons, but he appeared poised to have a breakout season this year.
In his first four starts of the season for the Angels Double-A affiliate, he was 2-0 with a 1.88 ERA, 0.625 WHIP, 2.3 BB/9, and an 11.6 K/9. He has not pitched since April 26 as he has been placed on the IL with elbow inflammation.
Coleman Crow (No. 21 @Angels prospect) spun 6 no-hit frames for the @trashpandas.
As for how the rest of the game went, you'll want to check this out: https://t.co/uvjyYiOk5o pic.twitter.com/IuxoD2etvn
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) April 9, 2023
Before the trade Crow was rated by MLB Pipeline as the Angels’ 19th best prospect. To put that ranking in perspective, MLB Pipeline rated the Angels farm system as the third worst in baseball entering the season. In ranking Crow as the 19th best prospect, MLB Pipeline indicated his ceiling was a back-end starter due to a lack of a true out pitch:
While none of Crow’s pitches jump off the page, the undersized right-hander does have four different ones with a very good sense of how to use them. His fastball averaged only around 90 mph in 2022, touching 94, but it plays up and gets a lot of ground-ball outs because of its sink. He throws his low-80s slider almost nearly as much as the fastball and it comes with very high spin rates to miss bats in and out of the zone. He can fold in a slower upper-70s curveball at times and his changeup flashes above-average-to-plus as well.
Ranking right behind Crow at 20 is Marceaux, the other prospect the Mets obtained in this trade. Marceaux, 23, was drafted by the Angels in the third round of the 2021 draft out of Louisiana State University. In that draft, the Angels only selected pitchers with each of their 20 selections.
Entering the 2023 season, MLB Pipeline noted Marceaux had the best change and control in the Angels organization. Both his change and control were rated 55 on the 20/80 scouting scale.
https://twitter.com/PitchingNinja/status/1370928140428709889?s=20
Like with Crow, MLB Pipeline believes Marceaux is a back of the rotation starter albeit one with potentially more upside. In addition to the best control and change, MLB Pipeline believes Marceaux possesses the “best pitch execution” in the Angels system, which helps him play up his average stuff:
Marceaux uses a combination of feel for pitching and a huge competitive streak to succeed. His fastball plays up a bit because it has good run and he can command it to both sides of the plate even though it averages around 91-92 mph. He has two distinct breaking pitches, manipulating the shape of his slider and curve and keeping hitters off balance with both. His low-80s changeup has very good fade and is often his best secondary pitch.
Marceaux has made 12 starts for the Angels Double-A affiliate this season. He is 3-6 with a 4.88 ERA, 1.542 WHIP, 2.9 BB/9, and a 6.9 K/9. It is possible he will be assigned to Double-A Binghamton.
