Christian Moore Isn't Ready for MLB and That's Perfectly Fine

Christian Moore is a very talented baseball player. While playing college baseball in the toughest conference in the country he slashed .375/.451/.797 as a college junior.

In 72 games the second baseman cracked 111 hits including 19 doubles and an incredible 34 home runs. Moore's prowess at the plate clearly warranted his first round selection in the 2024 MLB draft and the Angels picked him 8th overall.

Being drafted by a club known for quickly (perhaps too quickly) promoting top draft picks put an immediate spotlight on Christian Moore and with that spotlight came high expectations. Those expectations, however, were not realistic.

Christian Moore was optioned to the minors today and that is perfectly fine.

The Angels optioned Christian Moore and Kyren Paris, which slightly clears up the 2B competition.

Frazier is probably the leader, but Peraza, Madrigal have also had good performances this spring. Grissom hasn’t been as good but he’s out of options so I’d expect him on the team.
— Jeff Fletcher (@JeffFletcherOCR) March 14, 2026

Moore was one of several players vying for the Angels starting second base job this season. The fact the Angels would consider a player who was living in a college dorm room two years ago says as much about the organization's lack of depth as it does about Moore's talent level.

Considering Moore's youth, Adam Frazier's experience, and the fact Moore could be easily sent to the minors he was facing an uphill battle. Both Vaughn Grissom and Oswald Peraza are out of minor league options and would need to be placed on waivers before they could be sent down. Options will have a big impact on roster construction, but this move was all about getting Moore the development he needs. It didn't help Moore's case that Peraza is having a great camp.

Moore's development was non existent thanks to the Angels.

Mar 11, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Los Angeles Angels second baseman Christian Moore (4) bats against the Chicago White Sox during the third inning at Camelback Ranch-Glendale. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images | Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

Based on Moore's very limited minor league experience there was no need to call him up to the Major League level. In fact, there was no reason to even start him at the AA level other than internal pressure to get him to Anaheim as quickly as possible.

The leap from college to AA is massive, even for a player coming out of the powerhouse SEC. Simply put, only a handful of guys from the SEC get drafted and only a small portion of them will make it to AA much less succeed there.

However, Moore was only given 34 games at the AA level. He struck out 40 times and posted a slugging percentage of .323. These are clear signs of a player who is being challenged at or slightly above his current ability. The fact he was carrying a .342 on base percentage in AA just months after leaving college proved there was talent, though.

While no well functioning organization would promote a 21 year old struggling at the AA level to the AAA level, this is the Angels. A whopping 30 games there somehow convinced the Angels that Moore was ready for The Show. Unfortunately for Moore and the Angels another 40 K's occured in the thin air of the PCL, further proving Moore needed more development.

Last season Moore appeared in 53 games for the Angels. He had some key hits early on but was clearly overmatched at the plate as evidenced by his 62 strikeouts. Always a bit of a free swinger, Moore constantly swung at balls out of the zone and MLB caliber pitchers toyed with him. He simply was not ready.

Focusing on Moore's long term development shold be the priority.

Angels fans will point to Zach Neto as a player who lept from college to the big leagues quickly and had success. The reason for that is proof of just how difficult that transition is, especially at a premium defensive position.

2024 first round draft picks from the college ranks should be getting promoted from High A to AA this year or perhaps starting the year in AA with an eye towards maybe hitting AAA by the end of the season. The average age of a player in AA is 24 years old, and Moore is still a couple years younger than that.

Christian Moore isn't ready for MLB baseball yet. That's fine. In fact, that's normal. The goal should be to get him ready to not only get to MLB but have a long, successful career. Moore will play this entire season at age 22. There's no need to worry about him right now.