When the Los Angeles Angels drafted shortstop Zach Neto in 2022 with the 13th overall pick, some people may have thought it was a nice story of a kid being drafted out of Campbell University – a school that is not exactly known for sending players to the majors.

But Neto is not just a nice story – and no team would waste a first-round pick on a nice story. Neto was a star for the Camels, finishing his three-year career with a .403/.500/.751 slash line with 27 homers, 108 RBI and 31 steals in 100 games and 475 plate appearances and helping lead the team to the NCAA tournament in 2021 and 2022.

Little did people know, however, that within a year of being drafted, Neto would be playing shortstop for the Angels.

The Fast Track

After being drafted and signing with the Angels, Neto was assigned to High-A Tri-City, where he played in a total of seven games before moving up to Double-A Rocket City, where he slashed .320/.382/.492 with four home runs, 23 RBI and four steals. Neto started the 2023 season at Rocket City but was there for only seven games as he slashed .444/.559/.815 with three home runs and 10 RBI.

Neto didn’t even have time to find a place to sleep while at Triple-A Salt Lake City as his stint there lasted only four games before he was recalled to the majors by the Angels.  Less than a year after the draft, he was starting for the Angels after entering the season ranked as the 53rd best prospect by Baseball America, 89 by MLB.com and 47th by Baseball Prospectus