QUICK NOTE: Hope you’re enjoying the All-Star break … there will be no “Diamonds in the Rough” on Monday, July 18, though I do expect to chime in more frequently from now on with random Queen of Diamonds thoughts. But those who look only for the debuts can tune back in on Monday, July 25, for the next blockbuster installment …

Meanwhile, a little walk down memory lane …

The 2009 Major League Draft was a three-day siege that almost broke me. I won’t go into details, or the reason I almost dissolved into tears several times on Days 2 and, especially, 3 (I know, I know, there’s no crying in baseball). It turned out to be a pivotal few days as it forced me to make some assessments about where I was in my career (literally and figuratively), where I wanted to be and, eventually, start making some big life-altering decisions.

But there was one huge positive highlight for me and that came on Day 1, at MLB Network’s Secaucus studios, when — after what seemed an interminable wait — the Los Angeles Angels announced that, with the 25th overall pick, they were selecting New Jersey teenager, outfielder Mike Trout.

As one of the key reporters during that year’s MLB.com draft coverage, along with guru and star-of-the-show Jonathan Mayo, I was more than familiar with Trout and, in fact, had written the big feature on him pre-draft for the website:

http://tinyurl.com/kp9yj2.

Yeah, there’s no cheering in the pressbox, but it was hard for me to keep from letting out a huge roar of approval. And even though I didn’t, Trout’s personal cheering section in the seats behind me made up for it.

I did let out a whoop on Friday morning though as I read the news that, one year and one month later, and exactly a month shy of his own 20th birthday, Mike Trout is in the majors.

Since signing — and rapidly for a first-rounder — with the Angels in the early summer of 2009, he’s raked non-stop on a rapid ascent up the ladder, laying waste both to the opposition and to any remaining aspersions cast on kids from Jersey, and the belief by some that since they only play a handful of games during their regular season, they can’t compete with the “big boys” from the sunshine states.

In 2009, he wasted no time signing and hitting .360 in the Arizona League. By 2010 he split the season between the Angels’ two Class A squads, batting .362 in 81 games at Cedar Rapids and .306 at Rancho Cucamonga for his last 50 games, adding 10 homers, 58 RBI and 56 steals in his first full season. Named Minor League Player of the Year for 2010 by Topps and the Midwest League MVP, he also appeared in the 2010 All-Star Futures Game.

And this spring, with the Double-A Arkansas Travelers, he continued to do so, to the tune of a .330 average, nine homers, 11 triples, 27 RBI and 28 steals in 74 games.

Encouraged that a young man considered by some to be THE best prospect in baseball coming into 2011 (and yes, I’m looking at you, Bryce Harper), did not need any final Triple-A fine-tuning, the Angels skipped him from the Travs to the Halos (with due apologies to my good friend and Triple-A Salt Lake Bees writer extraordinaire Anita Tsuchiya).

On Friday night, with all eyes upon him and a near-capacity crowd of 40,161 at Angels Stadium, Trout became the youngest player to make his big league debut for the Angels since pitcher Andy Hassler in May 1971 (I’m sure that’s been noted elsewhere but I heard it first from voice of the Angels, Victor Rojas, so that’s who I’m crediting here).

In a 4-3 win against the Seattle Mariners, he was the starting center fielder and batted ninth, going 0-for-3. Somehow I doubt he’ll finish 2011 with an .000 batting average.

Congratulations to Mike and special congratulations to his awesome parents. This is as much your moment as his and I know you are enjoying it.

Go Jersey.

MIKE TROUT
OF, Los Angeles Angels
B/T: R/R H/W: 6-1/215 BORN: Aug. 7, 1991
ACQUIRED: Selected in the first round (25th overall) of 2009 out of high school in Millville, N.J.
PROMOTED: Contract purchased from Double-A Arkansas July 8 when P Tyler Chatwood was sent down.
DEBUT: July 8 in a 4-3 win against the Seattle Mariners: The starting center fielder, he batted ninth and went 0-for-3.
ZACK COZART
SS, Cincinnati Reds
B/T: R/R H/W: 6-0/195 BORN: Aug. 12, 1985
ACQUIRED: Selected in the second round of 2007 out of Mississippi
PROMOTED: Recalled from Triple-A Louisville July 7 when P Edinson Volquez was sent down.
DEBUT: July 7 in a 5-4 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers: The starting shortstop, he batted seventh and went 1-for-3 with a run scored.
NOTES: One neat note about Cozart, which was tweeted by Reds All-Star second baseman Brandon Phillips, is that he became Phillips’ 20th double-play partner in Phillips’ career. A middle infield with good pop and speed, he was hitting .310 with seven homers and 32 RBI for the Bats before his promotion. In 2010 he hit .255 with 17 homers, 67 RBI and 30 steals after a 2009 campaign at Double-A Carolina where he batted .262 with 10 homers and 59 RBI. He went right to Class A Dayton after signing in 2007.

COLE GARNER
OF, Colorado Rockies
B/T: R/R H/W: 6-2/210 BORN: Dec. 15, 1984
ACQUIRED: Selected in the 23rd round of the 2003 draft out of high school in California
PROMOTED: Recalled from Triple-A Colorado Springs July 4 when P Clayton Mortensen was sent down.
DEBUT: July 4 in a 4-1 loss to the Atlanta Braves: Pinch-hit for P Rafael Betancourt in the eighth inning and flied out.
NOTES: A high school teammate of fellow Rockies player Ian Stewart — for whom, ironically, Garner would be sent down to make room for a day later — Garner was hitting a torrid .340 with seven homers and 29 RBI in 36 games at Colorado Springs when promoted. He brought a .282 average over six seasons into the 2011 campaign, but missed all of 2004 due to shoulder surgery so despite being drafted in 2003, he did not debut until ’05. In 2010 with the SkySox he hit .304 with 13 homers and 61 RBI. However, luck was with him (though not for teammate Charlie Blackmon) — when Blackmon fractured his foot the next day, Garner was re-summoned and is now teammates once again with Stewart.

ZACH McALLISTER
RHP, Cleveland Indians
B/T: R/R H/W: 6-6/240 BORN: Dec. 8, 1987
ACQUIRED: Via trade from the New York Yankees in August 2010 for OF Austin Kearns
PROMOTED: Recalled from Triple-A Columbus July 7 when IF Cord Phelps was sent down.
DEBUT: July 7 in a 5-4 win against the Toronto Blue Jays: The starting pitcher, he did not get a decision but tossed four innings of five-hit ball, allowing three runs — two earned — and walking three while striking out four.
NOTES: Originally drafted by the Yankees in the third round of 2006 out of high school in Illinois, McCallister has rebounded from a disappointing 2010 campaign during which he posted a 5.09 ERA in 24 starts at Triple-A Scranton and a 6.88 ERA in three more starts with Columbus post-trade. In 2009, he’d been among the top starters in the minors with a 2.23 ERA at Double-A Trenton, following up on a fine ’08 where he combined between two Class A stops at Charleston and Tampa for a 14-9 record, 2.09 ERA and 115 strikeouts in 151 innings while walking just 21. McCallister’s stay, for now, was brief, as he was returned to Columbus July 8 to make room for infielder Luis Valbuena.

HECTOR SANTIAGO
LHP, Chicago White Sox
B/T: R/L H/W: 6-0/210 BORN: Dec. 16, 1987
ACQUIRED: Selected in the 30th round of 2006, signed May 2007, out of junior college in Florida
PROMOTED: Contract purchased from Double-A Birmingham June 26 when P John Danks went on the DL
DEBUT: July 6 in a 4-1 loss to the Kansas City Royals: The last of three pitchers, he tossed one perfect inning, striking out one.
NOTES: Is the waiting the hardest part? Santiago would know, since it took 11 days between his June 26 promotion and his July 6 debut to wait for that phone to ring and get into a game. In his first year as a starter after spending his first four pro seasons in relief, the draft-and-follow signee from Newark, N.J., began the season at Advanced-A Winston-Salem where he posted a 3.68 ERA in eight starts before being promoted to Birmingham, his first stint above A-ball. There his ERA was a 4.58 in six games, giving him a combined 4.08 ERA in 14 starts coming into his promotion, with 73 strikeouts against just 29 walks in 79 1/3 innings. He posted a 4.15 ERA in 37 games out of the Winston-Salem pen in 2010 and a 3.88 mark in 38 games there in 2009. Despite his starting role this season, he probably profiles as he did before this season, a middle-inning reliever or long man.

KYLE SEAGER
2B, Seattle Mariners
B/T: L/R H/W: 5-10/175 BORN: Nov. 3, 1987
ACQUIRED: Selected in the third round of 2009 out of the University of North Carolina.
PROMOTED: Contract purchased from Triple-A Tacoma July 6 when C Jose Yepez was designated for assignment.
DEBUT: July 7 in a 5-1 loss to the Los Angeles Angels: The starting third baseman, he batted seventh and went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts.
NOTES: A versatile infielder who has seen time at second, third and shortstop, Seager was hitting .455 in 12 games at Tacoma prior to his callup, batting .336 with six homers and 49 RBI overall between Tacoma and Double-A Jackson, where he started the season. With a .329 average dating back to his pro debut in 2009, he hit .345 with 14 homers, 74 RBI and 13 steals at Advanced A High Desert in 2010.

KYLE WEILAND
RHP, Boston Red Sox
B/T: L/R H/W: 6-4/195 BORN: Sept. 12, 1986
ACQUIRED: Selected in the third round of the 2008 draft out of Notre Dame.
PROMOTED: Contract purchased from Triple-A Pawtucket July 10 when P Scott Atchison was sent down.
DEBUT: July 10 in an 8-6 win against the Baltimore Orioles: The starting pitcher, he didn’t get a decision, allowing six runs, all earned, on eight hits in four-plus innings, walking two and fanning two. He was ejected, along with manager Terry Francona, in the fifth inning after hitting his second batter of the game, Vladimir Guerrero. Orioles pitchers also hit two batters in the bean brawl.
NOTES: Talk about a memorable debut. Recalled to replace ailing Jon Lester in the rotation, Weiland had posted a 3.00 ERA and 8-6 record with 99 strikeouts in 93 innings in 17 starts for the PawSox, limiting International League hitters to a .206 average. In 2008 he kicked off his career with perhaps his best season yet, posting a 1.50 ERA at short-season Lowell and limiting hitters to a .166 average. He skipped “low-A” in 2009 and went right to Advanced A Salem where he had a 3.46 ERA in 26 starts and at Double-A Portland in 2010 made 25 starts with a 4.42 ERA.

I am finishing this week’s Diamonds in the Rough with a special note, something I’ve never really done before. I’m writing an “undebut.” It’s not the first time that a player has been called up, I’ve prepped his debut, and he’s gone back down without making it into a game. But in those cases, I’ve always been pretty sure, at the very least, that player would come back. And while I hope I’m wrong, I fear that this guy might not get another cup of coffee (come on, Mariners, please prove me wrong … you are way too cool to let his happen). So, just in case, I am including this “undebut” for catcher Jose Yepez, who was designated for assignment last week to clear the way for outfielder Kyle Seager (see above).

JOSE YEPEZ
C, Seattle Mariners
B/T: R/R H/W: 6-0/205 BORN: June 29, 1981
ACQUIRED: Signed as a minor league free agent in 2008.
PROMOTED: Contract purchased from Triple-A Tacoma June 29 when P Erik Bedard went on the DL
DEBUT: To be continued?
NOTES: Certainly one of the most surprising promotions of the season thus far, Yepez’ arrival in the big leagues should have been the feel-good story for all of the players who just keep on keeping on. The Venezuelan-born Yepez was promoted to the big leagues on his 30th birthday, after having played only one game above Double-A in a 15-year pro career, to solidify — albeit temporarily — a banged-up catching corps. Originally signed by the Blue Jays back in 1997, he played for that organization in the lower tiers through 2004 before spending the next few years in the independent leagues. The Mariners signed him in the spring of 2006 but released him at the end of spring training, and he returned to the indies for the next few seasons before re-upping with Seattle in 2008. He’s yet to triple in 448 MILB games and has minimal power but good defensive chops. He was hitting .276 with one homer and 15 RBI at Tacoma in 28 games this season.