Angels Prospect Weekly: Gordon's No-Hit Gem, Grahovac Homers Three Times in His Pro Debut Week
By Blake Foster ·
Angels Prospect Weekly covers the last 7 days of action for the Angels farm system.
Gordon Spins Seven Hitless Innings at Rocket City
Austin Gordon (AA, RHP, Rank: 35) was the headliner in a Rocket City combined no-hitter on August 27, carrying seven scoreless innings while allowing zero hits, issuing no walks, and striking out eight across 22 batters faced. He threw 43 of 78 pitches for strikes and generated 13 swinging misses. That outing reframes a season. Gordon's full-year ERA sat at 4.56 before this start, a number dragged down by a home-run rate that has been the persistent knock on his profile. Strip out the long ball susceptibility and you see a pitcher who has been trending in the right direction for two months: over his last 30 days, he owns a 1.44 ERA across 25 innings with 33 strikeouts, a 5.6 BB%, and a 37.4% whiff rate. The strikeout rate (36.7 K% over that stretch) is the best sustained stretch of his career.
The mechanics of why this works come back to the riding four-seamer, which sits 95-97 and generates carry at the top of the zone. Paired with a cutter/slider combination in the mid-80s that shows tight spin and late glove-side action, Gordon has a legitimate two-pitch foundation for a starter. The changeup is an average offering that flashes depth, and when it's working as a third option, the sequencing becomes genuinely difficult for hitters. His command grades as average and the strike rate (51.9% over the last 30 days) backs that up. The home-run rate, 18 allowed in 115.2 innings on the season, still limits a stronger projection than a back-end starter. But seven hitless frames with no free passes directly address that concern. Whether it sticks over the final weeks of the season will say a lot about which direction his 2027 trajectory points.
Grahovac Makes Rancho Cucamonga Look Easy Right Away
Gavin Grahovac (A, 1B, Rank: 5) launched three home runs this week across 22 plate appearances in his professional debut with Rancho Cucamonga, adding five RBI and three walks to go with seven hits. He hit his first career home run on August 23 in his pro debut, then followed it with a two-homer game before the week was out. The surface numbers are eye-catching, but the supporting profile makes them meaningful: a 12.5 BB% and a 60 power grade built for pull-side damage. The question with any debut week is sample size, but the underlying tools make the production feel less fluky.
Grahovac is a 21-year-old corner bat out of the SEC, and the defensive profile is clearly first-base-bound long term. The 45 speed grade and fringe-average range at third base set a high offensive bar, which is why the power tool matters so much. At 60 raw with a swing built for backspin and pull authority, he has what it takes to clear that bar if the hit tool holds near average. The 50 hit grade and 68.5% contact rate over his first 20 games suggest the swing-and-miss concern versus advanced breaking balls has not materialized yet, though Low-A pitching is a limited test. He is the fifth-ranked prospect in the system and has every reason to be. How he handles a fuller Low-A sample and eventually the jump to High-A will reveal whether this debut week was prologue or peak.
Quick Hits
Jaxon Willits (A, SS, Rank: 10) · nearly hit for the cycle in a standout stretch, finishing the week 7-for-28 with a double, a homer, five walks, and five RBI. Over his first 22 games at Low-A, he is hitting .273 with a .430 OBP and a 21.0 BB% that is genuinely elite for the level. He is a 55 hit tool with a 60 makeup grade and a switch-hitting approach that emphasizes contact and zone control over slug; the 21 walks against 23 strikeouts on the season make the plate discipline look real rather than passive. The power is below-average at 45, so the OBP is how this profile works, and right now it's working.
Tyler Bremner (AA, RHP, Rank: 4) · delivered 5 innings, 2 hits, 1 run, 2 walks, and 8 strikeouts in his fourth Double-A start, generating 13 swinging misses along the way. His ERA at Rocket City sits at 3.60 through four starts, and over the last 30 days he has 34 strikeouts across 25 innings with a 34.0 K% and a 35.4% whiff rate. The 70-grade changeup stands out: mid-80s velocity, late fade, and enough arm-speed replication that hitters who sit on the 95-98 four-seamer keep getting beat anyway. The slider is a 55 that can lose shape, and the walk rate ticked up this start, but the Double-A body of work is holding up.
Trey Gregory-Alford (A, RHP, Rank: 13) · was the other arm in Rocket City's combined no-hitter on August 27, going 6 scoreless innings on 1 hit, 2 walks, and 4 strikeouts with 7 swinging misses. His season ERA is 4.07 through 21 starts at Low-A, but the last 30 days show a different pitcher: 2.18 ERA across 20.2 innings with a 29.9% whiff rate. He sits 96-101 with a 60-grade four-seamer and a hard slider in the upper-80s, and the raw stuff has always been there. The concern is a 40 command grade and a changeup that remains firmly below-average, which is why the long-term projection is bullpen. When the fastball and slider are working together as they were Wednesday, the stuff is already a problem for Low-A lineups.
Arjun Nimmala (AA, SS, Rank: 2) · went 8-for-31 with two doubles, six walks, and a strikeout rate (19.4% over the last 30 days) that is his best sustained mark since joining the Angels system. Over the past 30 days at Double-A he is posting a 19.5 BB% with a 20.7 K%, which is a disciplined profile for a 20-year-old at this level. He has a 55 power grade and a 60 arm built for shortstop long term; the hit tool (45) and swing-and-miss against breaking balls remain the developmental focus, but the walk rates have been genuinely encouraging.
Randy De Jesus (AA, OF, Rank: 38) · put up 3 hits, a double, a homer, and 3 RBI across 12 plate appearances in a short Double-A week, a promising line in a limited look. The broader context is trickier: over his last 30 days at Double-A he is hitting .163 with a 40.0 K% and a 57.3% swing rate, and the level jump from High-A has clearly revealed the contact limitations that define his profile. He has a 55 power grade and hit 20 combined home runs on the season, but the 45 hit tool and 61% career contact rate against upper-level arms create a narrow margin. He is 21 and the power is real; the swing decisions need to follow.
Ubaldo Soto (A, RHP, Rank: 33) · threw 6 innings of one-run ball, allowing 3 hits with no walks and 4 strikeouts. It was his cleanest outing in over a month: his ERA over the last 30 days sits at 7.65 with a WHIP of 1.65, so this was a sharp departure from a rough stretch. The fastball runs 94-97 with both a four-seamer and two-seamer that flash above-average movement, but the curveball remains underdeveloped and command sits at 45, which is why the season ERA is 5.76 through 90.2 innings. He is only 20, and the foundation is worth developing. Zero walks in six innings is a start.
Dylan Jordan (A+, RHP, Rank: 21) · struck out 6 over 3.2 innings but walked 5 and allowed a run on 1 hit, a line that captures the tension in his profile. His ERA over the last 30 days is 8.22 at High-A after a promotion from Low-A, where he had a 3.71 ERA across 80 innings. The 16 BB% and six home runs allowed in 15.1 innings at this level are the alarm bells; the 33.5% strikeout rate season-long and a plus sinker (60 grade, 95-97) are the reasons to stay patient. He is 20 years old with a sweeper that flashes 55 and a long track record of missing bats at the lower level. High-A is a real test, and right now the walk rate is winning the argument.
Capri Ortiz (A+, SS, Rank: 41) · went 4-for-15 with three doubles, a triple, and three RBI in a contact-heavy week. His last-30-day contact rate has climbed to 76.3% despite a 56.5% swing rate, which is the right direction for a profile that grades at 40 hit and 40 power. He has 35 stolen bases on the season and is hitting .258 with a .439 slugging over the last 30 days, modest but better than the full-season .230/.290/.351 line. The org depth projection is still the realistic outcome, but he is putting together his best month.
Mason McGwire (A+, RHP, Rank: 29) · went 4.2 innings, 4 hits, 1 run, 2 walks, and 6 strikeouts with 8 swinging misses. It is his fourth start at Tri-City since a move from the Angels' Low-A affiliate, and the 4.02 ERA in 15.2 innings there represents a reasonable audition in a small sample. The season ERA is 3.72 across 75 innings at three stops. He sits 95-98 with a fastball that shows arm-side run, and his splitter flashes chase ability, but the 40 command grade and inconsistent slider are the reasons the projection sits as an up-down reliever rather than a rotation piece.