Zach Neto

Zachary Adam Neto

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 185 lb.
• School Campbell University
• High School Coral Park High School
• Debut April 15, 2023

• Born January 31, 2001 in Miami, FL USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Zach Neto was the first player taken in the 2022 amateur draft to make his major league debut when he took the field on April 15, 2023 as the starting shortstop for the Los Angeles Angels against the Boston Red Sox. He batted eighth and went 0 for 4 with a pair of strikeouts in the game in a 9-7 loss. In a surprise move the previous day, the Angels had sent down veteran infielder David Fletcher, an undisputed regular only a couple of years earlier but who had by now lost his starting job and was mired in a 2 for 16 season-opening slump. Neto had been the 13th overall pick in the draft, out of Campbell University, the highest draft pick in school history, one year after the Angels had famously drafted nothing but pitchers in the 2021 amateur draft, and while considered a top prospect was not seen as one likely to streak to the majors particularly fast. Ironically, another Angels player, pitcher Chase Silseth, had been the first player from that draft to make it to the Show a little under a year earlier.

When he was drafted, Neto was coming off two outstanding seasons at Campbell University, hitting .405 in 2021 and .407 as a redshirt sophomore in 2022 (he had only appeared in 3 games in 2020 when the college season was ended by the COVID-19 pandemic and as a result the season was not counted against his future eligibility). He made the Al-Tournament team of the 2021 Big South Conference Tournament and was named MVP of the 2022 Big South Conference Tournament. Neto was an occasional pitcher in college, but the Angels had no intention of using him on the mound. He was assigned to the Tri-City Dust Devils of the Northwest League to start his career, then after 7 games was promoted to the Rocket City Trash Pandas of the AA Southern League, where he hit .320 in 30 games. In 2023, he was hitting .444 after 7 games for Rocket City when he was called up to Anaheim.

Further Reading

• Rhett Bollinger: "Surprise! Angels call up No. 2 prospect Neto for MLB debut: SS first '22 Draft pick to reach Majors; Fletcher optioned to Triple-A", mlb.com, April 15, 2023. [1]
• Brent Maguire: "Why this 2022 Draft pick is hitting ahead of Trout and Ohtani: After 44 Minor League games, Angels’ Neto has prime lineup spot", mlb.com, May 7, 2023. [2]

Related Sites

• Zach Neto on mlb.com
• Campbell University bio