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I don't think they did this. They did it to get the extra $3 million. I basically just think they wouldn't have Prosek if they didn't make the trade and he was the best pick after Cholowsky.

From Kiley at ESPN: Best value: 3B/C Cole Prosek (second round) is a prep position player who is older for the class, but is quite polished and performed well in the summer. He might be a 55 hit/55 power combo from the left side with a solid fit at third base and a shot to turn his raw catching skills into something more. Quickest to the big leagues: SS Roch Cholowsky (first round) is the easy answer here, as a big part of his scouting report is that, whatever he's going to be, he should get there pretty quickly. I wouldn't be surprised if he was ready for the big leagues as soon as next summer and contributing in all phases right off the bat. Sleeper to watch: RHP Joey Volchko (third round) looked like a late first-rounder in his first few starts this spring, as Georgia unlocked some new pitch shapes with an arm slot change (roughly 12 degrees lower) from his days at Stanford. The issue is his command is still a notch away from being a starter and, while nasty, he threw only 6% of his pitches with arm-side movement (i.e. fastballs or changeups), relying on four breaking-ball shapes with 94% of his pitches. Solving both things is a tall task for the pitching development group, but the upside could be huge if they can make Volchko perform more often the way he did in Omaha. Though Volchko isn't the same as Grant Taylor, the overall idea (huge stuff, let's see what role it will come in) is similar. One big thought: I like the mix here, which is easier to accomplish with a giant draft pool and the options that provides. Cholowsky gives the class a very high floor, and SS Landon Thome (comp round; son of Jim), Prosek, Volchko, CF Alex Weingartner (sixth round), and RHP Kyle Casteel (11th round) give plenty of upside around more predictable college drafts; Volchko and Weingartner have the highest upside of this group if things click because of their massive raw tools.

It's just my way of thinking and seeing the future. It doesn't disappoint me if it doesn't happen. It's just the road that is forming at the moment and may never happen. No skin off my nose if it doesn't. The alternate future my be just as satisfying.

If they build a condo building overlooking the new park it will be my life goal to buy a place there.

James has done a good job of explaining how this isn't Gonazalez and Eisert for the 34th pick. Its about the totality of the draft class. This gave them more flexibility to add more quality players. It should be looked at as a win for the organization.

I think people are sleeping on Carlson. His defensive upside is elite and he’s got a ton of other explosive tools. He’s got to continue to put strength on / you forget how young he is / preps are but I think it would be a massive mistake to trade him now…maybe in future but his value will be much higher in future in my mind.

Obsessively focusing on a single bad draft pick as a demographic problem is why this board cheered avoiding high school and “athletes” over ball players just because of Courtney Hawkins. Instead we got a bunch of fat college corner players who sucked and nobody blamed it on college.

I think Thome was happening no matter what. The whole world knew it. Guessing this fit his slot bonus better, and their intel was that Thome might not make it to 41 (Yankees at 35) while Prosek would. Prosek DID make it through.

I am surprised by the angst about this. I was and proponent of Gonzales in May on and he hasn't disappointed me. And of course the idea to trade him would come up and the near universal sentiment was that a couple of good months in Charlotte didn't create trade value. In Chicago, he wasn't overmatched, but he didn't wow either; and he never played middle infield. So how much trade value did he really build up? And then the reality is that he just wasn't on Getz' A-team (sending him back down was the final statement on that). Getz may be wrong about that, and perhaps other teams saw him more favorably, and, thus might have paid more. But I could also see scenarios where they let him linger in AAA for a while, and whatever value there is wastes away. I'll save my angst for when we package young players for an average starter....

That's how the MLB Draft works though. You can't get caught up in where a player is picked.

Even though this is hyperbole it's what I've been trying to impart about the Gonzalez trade and what Kiley McDaniel said about how having a giant draft pool impacts everything. It's just so much more than Gonzalez for Thome or missing some imagined opportunity to get temporary pitching. It's long haul team building vs. short term stab in the dark. What good does winning one round do? It's a little extra playoff money but at what cost to the future where young players you trade away can make a difference because you lost depth. Don't get me wrong, when playoff talk 1st started I think I quoted a post from @Chimpton that said I thought making the playoffs was always very important. But there are levels to making the playoffs and actually having a real shot to win the World Series. For this year I'd like to at least make 1 move that tells the young guys the organization cares about winning now and let's it be known that we believe in you all to achieve now and in the future with who we already have and we will work as hard as you all do to provide help where it's needed.

I don't see any way that the MLBPA actually agrees to no high school draft picks. I think it's kind of a nonstory. No way that happens.

You cant walk in the HR Derby.

I really hope there are condos so I can basically live at the new stadium.

It's fluff. Drew Burress was also on this field in question. In no world did they like Burdette more than him. Just talking up a guy they seem to like a whole lot.

Since Roch is now our SS of the future, his screen presence is vital so that he can step in and make Ankin Law ads.

All 3 Sox on the field for the AL to end the game. Beautiful.

Only 2 barrels in the entire game so far and both are off his bat.

I just saw a trade hypothetical of the guardians getting Robert and it made me so mad.

I love trades. But I hate young-for-old trades that seem to be all anyone can come up with this time of year. Those trades destroyed us over the past decade (and beyond): Samardzija, Shields.....Kimbrel trade was the kill shot of the last playoff edition, and it would have set this edition back another 2 years had the Cubs picked Crochet instead of Madrigal. Yea, let's do more of that.

Prosek is largely considered the better prospect. I think Law is the only one who has Thome ahead of him.

The draft stuff from the owners is so ridiculous I kind of assume it’s just so they can “cave” on those ideas in exchange for the MLBPA conceding on other talking points as some kind of make-believe compromise.

Confucius? Jack Handey?

2027 draft is safe. It's the same rules as previous ones. 2028 is the first one that could be changed.

Look at all that has happened since a Sox fan became Pope: Sox win the MLB draft lottery, get their first 1.1 pick since Harold Baines in '77. Justin Ishbia is announced as the next Sox owner. He meets with the Pope and hints that a new stadium is eventually coming. Colson Montgomery hits 21 HRs in the 2nd half of last season after being called up (44 total over his first 162 games) Sox defy the odds and sign Murakami Sox enter the ASB in a 1st place tie thanks in part to Mune, Colson, and breakout seasons from Vargas, , Peters, and Meidroth. Antonacci and Braden Montgomery look like they're keepers, too. Most analysts believe the Sox had a highly successful MLB draft, and not just because of their 1.1 pick. That's just stuff I could think of off the top of my head and not a comprehensive list. An amazing turnaround over the last year.

I loved his swing. I held out irrational hope for far too long.

Of course the scary version of this profile is Wes Kath. His hit tool was vastly overrated and the old Sox PD group couldn’t help him. I hope this turns out better.

There is a place for this, but this is the extra investing money, and not the retirement funds IMO. I have stuff like this, but in my extra personal trading account, not my 401k or IRA.

The last 45 years have taught Sox fans to expect disppointment.

He's one year in the league with 23 HRs and 53 RBIs and a 772 OPS with good defense at a primary position. He's not getting traded.

Probably a corner guy, not really unexpected.

Lets drill down on this while we have a few days…..

If I had seen any posts worth a damn I wouldn't have to point out your bitterness and clenched anus. I'm a terrible stalker. I don't think I had commented on any of your posts for 2 or 3 weeks. Of course you've not had much reason to post because every time you open your keyboard your venom spills out and things have just been going so right for the Sox it leaves you dumbfounded and speechless. Well speechless until you never shut up because getting the last word is your claim to victory . Go ahead be predictable.

Mistake not having Seranthony throw to him.

Hasn't he already marred enough?

DH the kid

"Prosek was viewed in large part as a future third baseman following the summer, though he's been catching some this spring and there are people who think he may start off there in pro ball. A lot of the value here will come with bat, but it's a very, very good one." 2B was/is the other position he has been listed as...

Interesting. I've read big throwing arm, probably not athletic enough to stay at short, probably too good a hitter to let develop at catcher, so 3b. That does sound like a lefty Bonemer to me.

0 hr/11 rbi 727 ops and on the injured list in A ball isn't going to get you much in way of controlled starting pitching

Can’t wait to have gold glove defense at short and hopefully a move to third for Colson will take his D up another level while helping with his back too.

One interesting aspect of this trade is how Eisert has been revealed as an analytics darling and is an otherwise high value pitcher. I got the shakes every time he entered a game and had assumed he was #13 on the Sox pecking order.

Colson would have won it, but no one in baseball considers my guy for anything.

Seems like something the masses are split on. I think it's a wait and see situation. I loved the contributions Gonzalez made while Mune was injured and I think his improvement could be real. However a major shot at re-stocking the farm doesn't come along very often when you aren't getting the benefits of Revenue Sharing Small market teams, your international system isn't producing results yet and your owner is still Jerry Reinsdorf. I can't blame Getz for doing what he deems best to keep the talent pipeline filled cashing in a 24 year old with only a couple months of good production and drafting some talent for down the road while also knowing there's Cholowsky and Bonemer for possible near MLB ready help . I'm as optimistic as anyone about the potential of prospects and while things were bad was getting accused of drinking the Sox Kool-aid , being a sheep, a Sox propagandist. I supported Colson through the bad,I was one of the 1st to say I wanted Mune in the off season when I didn't think it was actually possible. This place was Tox-Talk so there's still a lot of of those who were proponents of that Tox-Talk still doing what they have been doing for the last few years and taking any opportunity to do so. I know you are not one of those people as are many others who aren't sure of this move but it's not something that will provide immediate answers. Right now and for the next year what Gonzalez does with the Pirates will drive the narrative . But it's the development of the HS players drafted and any other later rounds over slot picks and future International players that will sustain any run of success . In this division that can be winnable every year the talent reaping aspect is crucial. It;s not just about Gonzalez vs Thome. He really had no place on the Sox in the immediate future and a decision had to be made to try to use him in a trade for a temporary push for a year or 2 in a market where there are still too many teams not throwing in the towel or using a once in 50 years opportunity to push for a longer lasting competitive window that will take us to the Ishbia years and a possible new stadium in an excellent position to still be a factor. Oh forgot something important. There's also a chance that MLBPA gives in on keeping more HS players out of the draft so this might've been the last chance to cash in on that .

I don't know who that is. Is that a name you call someone who disagrees with you?

I think the Sox got great value for trading Gonzalez for the 34th pick and the bonus pool money . Having the #1 pick and all the money that came with it was the perfect time to restock their minor leagues.

Early nickname candidate - “Money Talks” Murakami.

He just feels like a guy the Angels are going to sign, but I would like the Sox to do anything to add significant talent. His K rate, in zone miss, etc aren’t pretty but the power is stoopid, so… might be fun.