Welcome to the Angels, Jerry DiPoto!  It is great to have you on board.  Go ahead and take a seat at your fancy new general manager desk and bask in the opportunity to finally get to sit in the big chair... OK, time is up!  Hope you enjoyed that brief moment in revelry because now it is time to get to work because, in case you didn't notice, there is actually a lot that needs to be done around here if the Los Angeles Angels are going to get back to being contenders.  Put on your hard hat, Jerry.

Yeah, I know it sucks.  Most of the time when you take a new job you get a few weeks to settle in, get some training, learn the lay of the land and so on.  Worst case scenario, you get a few months to get fully up to speed.  DiPoto though?  Well, he's got until 12:01 am EST this Thursday, and even then he might find himself behind the rest of the pack by then.  However, DiPoto does have a few days to play catch up on the off-season, but to do that, he must first check off a few tasks on his GM honey-do list first.

I've teased at it for weeks and now it is finally here, the Top 30 Angels Prospect Countdown.  We here at Monkey With a Halo have combined forces with Scott Allen from LA Angels Insider to provide you with all you ever needed to know about the best the Angels farm system currently has to offer.  This countdown starts today with this year's sixth-round draft choice fireballer Austin Wood and it will continue for the next several weeks as we take an in-depth look at one prospect each weekday until we get to number one (you'll never guess who it is... and by that I mean you will totally guess it).  We'll also be supplementing this coverage with some podcasts over at LAAI featuring Scotty and myself, so stay tuned for information on when those will be available for your listening pleasure.  Enough with the introductions, let's see if this Austin Wood kid was really worth all the hassle it took to sign him.

Austin Wood
Position: Starting Pitcher Level: Rookie
Bats: Right  Throws: Right  Height: 6'4"  Weight: 225 lbs.
Age: 21  Born: July 11, 1990

2011 Season Stats (at USC): 5-7, 77.0 IP, 5.61 ERA, 90 H, 34 BB, 50 K

2011 Season Stats (Rookie): 0-0, 1.1 IP, 20.25 ERA, 90 H, 0 BB, 1 K

Fastball – A. Not much movement, but according to scouting reports it sits at 97+.

Breaking Ball – C. Slurve type curve, nothing to write home about yet.

Change up – B-. He has it, and uses it. Nothing in the way of commanding it, but it’s good.

Performance – N/A, just 1.1 innings of minor league play.

Projection – A. Cape Cod manager said he was capable of going top 5 or 10 in draft.

Comp – Floor: Erratic reliever that never lives up to promise. Ceiling: Josh Beckett.

Video - Wood pitching for USC

Estimated MLB Arrival Date: 2015.

The October 31st, 2011 edition of daily news for the LA Angels including Jerry DiPoto officially introduced as the new Angels general manager, Moreno gives DiPoto 'complete power', 2012 payroll will be between $130-140 million and much more...

The Story: Jerry DiPoto was officially named the Angels new general manager and received a five-year contract.

The Monkey Says: Only the first three years are guaranteed though.  All in all, the DiPoto hiring is already getting high marks across the baseball world.  As I said when I first wrote about the news, Jerry brings a little bit of everything to the table thanks to his varied experience.

The Story: Arte Moreno says that DiPoto has 'complete power' in front office decisions.

The Monkey Says: A lot of good quotes came out of DiPoto's press conference, but this is the big one.  Obviously this could just be pure talk, especially since Scioscia later went on to say that he will still be offering his opinions to DiPoto, but a public pronouncement like this definitely should empower him if Scioscia or Moreno try and interfere.  Still, that fact that this was such a big topic at the introductory press conference shows how much this has become a concern.

After the jester Tony Reagins was kicked out of the court weeks ago the Angels have been on a search for a new, competent GM to take his place. When that new GM settles into his/her kingdom of Anaheim they are going to have a lot of work to do. With a new job in place with a new organization it's no doubt they will want to make the biggest splash possible in order to let the rest of the baseball world that the Angels mean some serious business. What better way to make your mark on a new team than with the signing of one of the two biggest free agents in the past few years, Prince Fielder and Albert Pujols.

Congratulations, Angel fans.  The Angels got one right.  According to Ken Rosenthal on Twitter, the Angels are set to name Arizona Diamondbacks executive Jerry DiPoto as their brand new general manager:

@Ken_Rosenthal Ken Rosenthal Sources: DiPoto to be named #Angels GM. #MLB

This news makes me very, very happy.  OK, so DiPoto isn't Andrew Friedman, but this is probabaly the next best hire the Angels could have made.  DiPoto is a former player, spent half a season as the interim GM of the D'Backs, currently serves as their senior VP of scouting and player development and is known to be at least open to sabermetric ways of thinking.  In other words, he has experience in just about every facet of the game and a track record that proves he knows what he is doing, making him one of the most qualified and arguably safest hires out there.

The big questions he'll have to answer now is what his plan to fix the Angels roster will be as well as how he will collaborate with Mike Scioscia.  That first question we can only speculate on.  What we do know is that he is not afraid to make bold moves, as he demonstrated when he traded Dan Haren to the Angels.  As for the Scioscia question, that's something that will take time to work out, but I definitely think it helps that DiPoto played in the big leagues and isn't some Ivy League nerd.  I have to think that will buy him instant credibility with Sosh.

Finally, if I can offer DiPoto one piece of advice if he wants to win fans over on his hire, then this should be the first statement he utters at his introductory press conference, "Hi, my name is Jerry DiPoto.  I am proud to be the new Angels general manager and I am even more proud to announce that Jeff Mathis has been non-tendered."

Welcome to the Halos, Jerry.  Please try to not suck.

The October 28th, 2011 edition of daily news for the LA Angels including Trumbo's broken foot was actually hurt for several weeks, the myth of Donnie Moore's suicide, wondering if Angel fans can root for Nolan Ryan and against the Rangers at the same time and much more...

The Story: Mark Trumbo claims his foot broken had been bothering him for six weeks before he finally was placed on the disabled list.

The Monkey Says: That would explain why he really fell of towards the end of the season, though it makes me wonder if the team knew about this and had him play through it.  Not that it was the wrong call if the doctors said he can't make it worse, but there have a been a number of times the last few seasons an Angel player has hidden injury.

The Story: Angel fans are split on their desire to see former Angel Nolan Ryan win a World Series, but also to see the Rangers, which he owns, lose.

The Monkey Says: I'm not split at all, I want the Rangers to lose.  I know Nolan Ryan was one of the greatest Angels, but when I was growing up, he had already left the Angels.  I couldn't have been happier to see the Rangers choke twice in that epic game last night.

The Angels may not have a GM (yet) but that doesn't mean we can't get ready for the start of the off-season which is coming up fast.  In order to help the new guy (or gal) out, the least I could do is come up with a bit of a primer on the viable free agent and trade targets that the future general manager might want to consider to plug in the many holes the Angel roster has.  The Angels may seem like they have too many first base and designated hitter types already, but each of those players carries major risks and/or flaws.  That could translate to the Angels deciding to make a "big splash" by bringining in a bona fide stud to man one of those spots.  But who could they realistically get?

If you are going to dream, you might as well dream big.