The Los Angeles Angels claimed catcher Jackson Williams off waivers from the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday, according to a team press release. Because the Angels’ 40-man roster is full at 40, Los Angeles will place their new catcher on the 60-day disabled list. They can place him on the 60-day disabled list because he is coming off of season-ending knee surgery on his right meniscus, which he underwent on September 24th. He suffered the season-ending injury to his right knee in a September 19th game against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Jackson Williams, a 28-year-old catcher from Tulsa, Oklahoma, made his major-league debut this year in September for the Rockies. He had spent most of the 2014 season with the Rockies’ Triple-A affiliate at Colorado Springs. In 286 plate appearances at Triple-A Colorado Springs, Williams slashed .256/.353/.368 with four home runs, fifteen doubles and 34 runs batted in. In his very brief stint with the Rockies’ major-league club in September that lasted only seven games, Williams went 3-for-14 with one home run and three runs batted in.
Williams was a 43rd overall draft selection in the First-Year Player Draft of the San Francisco Giants back in 2007 out of the University of Oklahoma, where he caught fellow Angels’ right-handed pitcher Garrett Richards for one year during the 2007 college season. Once ranked as one of the top-18 best Giants’ best organizational prospects back in 2007 and 2008, Williams failed to reach his potential with San Francisco, never reaching the major leagues in his seven years in their minor league system. Before the 2014 campaign, he signed a minor-league contract with the Rockies.
In eight minor-league seasons, Jackson Williams hit .223/.309/.337 with 41 home runs, 100 doubles and 229 runs batted in. Also, Williams had at least one stint at Triple-A during every season since 2010. Known for his defensive skills at catcher, he managed to throw out thirty-seven percent of all potential base stealers in his days in the minor leagues.