DOWN ON THE FARM

A team-by-team look at the Angel’s minor league affiliates:

Midland Angels

Midland, Texas

Club established: The Angels took over the Midland franchise from the Chicago Cubs after the 1984 season.

Angel Affiliation: Double-A team in the Texas League.

Ownership: The team has two co-owners, Miles Prentice and Bob Richmond, both attorneys. They bought the team in 1990.

Manager: Mitch Seoane, who managed Angel teams at Lake Elsinore for three years and Cedar Rapids for three more.

Top current prospects: Jarrod Washburn, a left-handed pitcher, was the Angels’ second-round draft choice in 1995 and is regarded as one of their top young prospects. He’s 13-12 this season. Former Cal State Fullerton catcher Bret Hemphill has been slowed by a shoulder injury since mid-June, and the injury ended his season earlier this month. He was hitting .308 at the time.

Most famous alumni: Current Angel shortstop Gary DiSarcina and outfielders Tim Salmon, Garret Anderson and Jim Edmonds played at Midland. Joe Carter started his pro career there as the Cubs’ first-round draft choice in 1981.

Home stadium: Christiansen Stadium, which seats 5,000, is known as a hitter’s ballpark, primarily because of those homer-helping West Texas winds.

Midland baseball history: Midland has finished above 200,000 in attendance in each of the last two seasons. One of the franchise’s biggest crowds--5,788--turned out to see Fernando Valenzuela’s only home appearance as a Midland Angel in July 1991.

Midland is famous for: The region, which also includes nearby Odessa, is known for its hot, dry summers. Oil is the leading industry.

Source: Midland Angels