Angels Bet on Future With Pick : Baseball draft: They select outfielder who won’t be available for two years.

The Angels failed to get the man atop their most-wanted list in the amateur draft Thursday. Blame it on McKay Christensen.

In the days leading up to the draft, the Angels said they wanted a right-handed pitcher, preferably one with college experience. The name most frequently mentioned was Cade Gaspar of Pepperdine and Capistrano Valley High. If not Gaspar, their next choice figured to be right-hander Jaret Wright of Katella, son of former Angel Clyde Wright.

But when the Angels’ turn came Thursday morning, they made Christensen, a left-handed center fielder from Fresno Clovis West High, their No. 1 pick.

Another changeup from the Angels, but what makes this move even more odd is that Christensen has signed a letter of intent to play football and baseball at Brigham Young. He also has announced that he will begin his two-year Mormon mission this summer.

What’s more, he’s the first high school player to be picked in the first round by the Angels in more than 10 years.

So, why did they take a chance on Christensen, who might not be ready to play in the majors until almost the turn of the century?

According to Bob Fontaine, the Angels’ assistant vice president for scouting and player personnel, Christensen was simply too good to pass up, even though Gaspar was still available.

“We felt McKay could be our guy,” Fontaine said. “When he comes back (from the mission), he’s going to go into his baseball career with a very good approach. That’s the way we’ve looked at it.

“He’s a quality runner. He’s got a good line-drive swing. He’s got enough strength to hit the ball out.”

It is believed, however, that the Angels cooled on Gaspar when they could not get a financial commitment from him late Wednesday and that they have already reached a $700,000 contract agreement with Christensen.

Christensen was a three-year starter at Clovis West, hitting .486 (34 for 70) with six home runs, 23 runs batted in and 28 stolen bases in 28 attempts this past season. In his career, he stole 62 bases without being thrown out.

He has been timed at 3.9 seconds from home plate to first base and was the top-ranked runner, according to Baseball America’s rankings. Overall, he was the 47th-ranked prospect and the No. 23 position player.

“He’s just a special kid that comes around once in a lifetime,” said Clovis West Coach Stan Bledsoe. “He’s the best player I’ve seen in the 24 years I’ve been coaching.”

Christensen, 5 feet 11, 175 pounds, also was a standout running back, scoring a state-leading 44 touchdowns and gaining a team-leading 1,759 yards for Clovis West’s undefeated Central Section championship football team.

Christensen was attending a grad night party and was unavailable for comment Thursday. But after announcing his decision to sign at BYU in February, he told the Fresno Bee that “Pro baseball is kind of a dream.”

In April, Christensen told each major league team he will begin serving his two-year Mormon mission this summer.

That news put the Angels off at first, but they changed their minds Wednesday, deciding it might be worth the wait if Christensen was available. Fontaine also said he believed Christensen wouldn’t last until the second round.

“We felt he was a kid who would fit in the organization well,” Fontaine said. “We felt it was worth taking this step. Even with him leaving for two years, we still felt we were making the right decision.

“We believe we’ll be able to sign him before he leaves.”

Times staff writer Ross Newhan contributed to this story.

* THE WRIGHT STUFF

Katella High pitcher Jaret Wright was drafted by Cleveland in the first round of the amateur baseball draft. C6