NorthSideSox72

QUOTE (scs787 @ Oct 13, 2014 -> 01:09 PM) Curious, has Bassitt said he prefers relieving recently, or was it just the interview he did last year with future sox? Both. To us before, and again recently in an article on one of the major outlets, I forget which now (but it was just a few days ago).

QUOTE (Stan Bahnsen @ Oct 13, 2014 -> 10:50 AM) Of course he has a long way to go, but also it's rather silly to put too much on three innings in a first outing in the AFL. Completely laughable, really. Montas was throwing 100+, a few ticks higher than his usual, which tells me there's an excellent chance he was overthrowing in an attempt to impress. This typically leads to a loss of command. The excellent reports of his performance while healthy at WS this year indicated significant strides in command as well as control. He was typically mid to upper nineties in those outings, not 100+. You can put a lot on these infinitesimally tiny sample size reports if you wish, and there's no other data input currently, so people will. This guy's repertoire is a starter's if the changeup improvement is real. Not sure why you responded to me on this? Pretty sure I never said my belief in him (or lack thereof) was somehow established by this one report. There have been reports of varying depth on this guy for years, and there are patterns in the noise. Those are things I highlighted, along with pointing out the difference between individual pitch command and overall control and strike-throwing.

QUOTE (Alpha Dog @ Oct 12, 2014 -> 10:55 PM) http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown...-220100067.html LOL, that was hilarious. The outgoing Navajo Nation President... who was charged with official theft and settled out of court to pay the money back and avoid prosecution... and who is so unpopular there now for his corruption that he got 4% of the vote in the latest election results... was there to "represent" the Navajo Nation. Not to mention that the Navajo Nation Tribal Commitee voted 9-2 in favor of a resolution condemning the team name, and here's this guy implicitly saying it is OK. Corrupt politicians come in all forms, including Navajo. Snyder is so tone deaf it is laughable. Did he not think people would find out who this guy was? Oh look, I found this minority person who was willing to sit in my box, SEE I'M NOT RACIST!!!

QUOTE (bmags @ Oct 10, 2014 -> 01:53 PM) It's still annoying. It's one of those things where every writer feels the need to throw out there from here eternal as some sort of safeguard. "See guys, I know what's going on, I'll comment about how his delivery means we should downgrade him so if it does happen I'm smart but if it doesn't I'm still good too" Again, I think in Danish's case, it is a very valid point to keep in mind. Call it whatever you will, but I'm not a guy to mention it just to say "see I was right!". I want him to succeed. Heck, his delivery isn't necessarily even my biggest concern with him, but I do have it in the back of my head. Evaluating these guys means you ALWAYS keep negatives and risks in mind. Every prospect has them. Ignoring them makes no more sense than ignoring positive tools and traits.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Oct 10, 2014 -> 12:10 PM) There is a Tribune article saying Cooper is making a rare appearance at the AFL, as the Sox try to accelerate the progress of their younger pitchers to use as bullpen pieces. The most interesting part was the quote from Bassit, who seems to WANT to be a reliever. QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Oct 10, 2014 -> 01:01 PM) When we did a story with Bassit maybe a year ago as part of FutureSox, he had hinted that he preferred coming out of the pen, etc. Yup, he told us that last year right here. He prefers relief work, but he'll do what they tell him to of course.

QUOTE (Y2JImmy0 @ Oct 10, 2014 -> 11:47 AM) It's so lazy that people look at Danish's delivery and make him a future bullpen piece. Watch the kid pitch. I wouldn't be surprised if he's starting at Charlotte to end next season. His delivery definitely gives me pause, and I don't think that's lazy. It puts stress on places that other deliveries don't - it's a risk you have to take into account with him. Doesn't mean he can't start, it just means he has a risk to his career as a starter that MAY make him a reliever later.

VZ/MX preview posted on FS, and there is a pinned thread in PHT.

The White Sox have 8 guys playing in the Venezuelan Winter League, which opens play tonight. Half of them have played in the majors for the Sox. Here is a preview of who is playing in VZ. We'll do another preview later for the DR, PR and ABL as we get closer to their openings. There will also be an ongoing thread in the FS area to talk winter ball.

Winter VZL opens tonight, Mexico Saturday, DR on the 18th. PR on 11/1, ABL on 11/7. Here are the guys playing in VZ this year... Cleuluis Rondon, Leones del Caracas Nestor Molina, Cardenales de Lara Jarrett Casey, Tiburones de La Guaira Ryan Kussmaul, Tiburones Mauricio Robles, Tiburones Taylor Thompson, Tiburones Miguel Gonzalez, Tiburones Carlos Sanchez, Tiburones Andy Wilkins, Tiburones*** Wilkins is in the reserve list, so he may or may not play.

QUOTE (bmags @ Oct 10, 2014 -> 10:12 AM) Which is crazy to me because I thought last year showed dramatic improvement in command. His k/bb was great. There is a difference between control and command, and the scouting report kind of tells you about that. He has general control over his arsenal such that he can throw strikes, but he doesn't have good enough command on any of them to throw the right strikes consistently with each. His individual pitch command is what needs work.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Oct 10, 2014 -> 09:58 AM) So Trayce Thompson's floor is a backup major league OF who is at least on occasion tolerable with the bat? You will guarantee that he will reach that level? I just don't see that. His floor to me is a guy who struggles with offense at Charlotte and is only ever promoted as an injury fill in because he hits worse than Danks. He definitely has the tools to be better than that, but right now I'm skeptical that he'll ever reach the level Jordan currently is. That's what it means that "his floor is lower than Danks right now". I'd be OK with an argument that Thompson's FLOOR is lower than Danks' FLOOR, though I honestly think those two things are interchangeable at the moment. But an argument that Thompson's CEILING is lower than Danks2's FLOOR is, IMO, wholly inaccurate.

QUOTE (StRoostifer @ Oct 9, 2014 -> 09:41 PM) Outside of a call up in 2012 where Trayce batted .280, he has always been in the low to mid 200's in BA and that goes from rookie league through AA covering 2009- 2014. IMO, as of right now Trayce has shown that his ceiling is below Danks floor. Trayce is 23 and struggling at AA while Danks at 23 was at Charlotte. At this point, the best one could hope for our of Trayce would be a backup OF. His low BA and strike outs are killing his value and potential upside. I know he's only 23 but seeing how Trayce is struggling at AA, how long before he earns a callup to Charlotte? Then, how long before he earns a callup to the Sox? If ever? I know I sound like I given up on him but a 23 year old batting .237 at AA and striking out 151 times in 595 plate appearances doesn't do much as far as confidence goes. To this point, he's just not a good hitter. The bolded is a little ridiculous. With the tools Trayce has, his FLOOR is probably what D2 is right now. His ceiling is much higher. Danks was 23 at Charlotte because he reached Charlotte after just 113 pro games, which is insane and was quite obviously far too aggressive. He then spent 2.5 seasons there until he got good. Danks also does not have the speed or raw power that Thompson does. Thompson hasn't put it together yet, and there's a good chance he won't. But he's already, today, going to be similar to what Danks brings in the majors.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Oct 10, 2014 -> 05:54 AM) http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2202809...-season/page/10 Obviously, 50% of this is due to Rodon's presence alone, but the article nicely sums up the progress this year of Anderson, Hawkins, Montas, Danish and Adams, as well as Micah Johnson. (Whether you agree or disagree, Danish is already being placed here on the "future bullpen piece" list instead of being viewed as a starter, at least for the moment.) So, despite the "disappointments" with Semien, Daniel Webb, Erik Johnson, Davidson...and that earlier "core" group of outfielders in Walker/Thompson/Mitchell, things are looking up for the moment. Bleacher Report is a garbage site. That said, putting the Sox system 22nd is close to what others have said recently, around 20th. Also, I really wouldn't put Semien and Webb in the same group as Johnson and Davidson. The first two struggled a bit but still showed strong signs of likely future success. The latter two, well... those were big disappointments (though I wouldn't write either off yet).

QUOTE (Eminor3rd @ Oct 9, 2014 -> 01:27 PM) Yeah, definitely. The outliers have "baggage," and a team needs to investigate that kind of a guy and add it to the list of risk factors. But then, sometimes the mercurial guy fits perfectly, i.e. Yunel Escobar amidst Tampa's "Island of Misfit Toys." Absolutely. AJP is a great example.

This has been linked from the About Us / Contact page on FutureSox, if you want to refer back to it. We may unpin this guy eventually.

I'm a bigger fan of Recchia than most of the FS crowd. The bad news is he's 25, slipped through the draft and two other orgs, isn't real tall (listed at 6') and has a somewhat high effort delivery. The good news is his fastball (90-93, T94) has a nice late tail, his slider was already above average in 2013 (per two scouts I spoke with) and is now a couple ticks faster (now runs 85-88), he's got a curve that gets good swing and miss, he's a bulldog and can handle the innings with a solid build. He had a very nice year in AA, in fact statistically, he was one of the strongest pitcher the Sox had in the minors. I think he's got a shot at being a 4/5 starter, but more likely he's got a good shot at being successful in a bullpen role where his velocity can play up a bit and he can lean on the slider more. He shouldn't be mistaken as being in the ranks of guys like Danish or Montas (who are T10 prospects in this system), but I'd put him around 20-25 in this system today and he's a guy to keep an eye on. The fact that he's a Chicago area guy who sold Italian sausages at the park as a youngster just adds to the fun. I didn't even know any of that when I first noticed him down in Winston-Salem and took video.

QUOTE (Eminor3rd @ Oct 9, 2014 -> 10:39 AM) It's funny how "cohesive" a team gets when they win a few games. I think there's definitely an effect for chemistry, but I think it's close to completely unpredictable, both in magnitude and frequency. As a GM, the best you can do is put the best talent you can on the field and respond to behavioral outliers as they show up. I pretty much agree with this. But there are also times where, if signing or trading for a new player, it is at least worth knowing a bit about the personality involved. Really just looking for those outliers - guys like Zambrano whose behavior and reputation indicate they could have a significant effect on the clubhouse (and there are some on the positive end too). Then you consider that with all the other factors. But you don't want it to weigh a lot (unless it is an extreme like Zambrano) because, as you said, there's really no predicting the final outcome.

Last offseason, we experimented with having White Sox minor leaguers write guest articles for FutureSox. We had pitchers Scott Carroll and Chris Bassitt write for us (and both made the majors). People seemed to like the pieces. So we're back again this offseason. First up is RHP Mike Recchia, a Crestwood native and former Comiskey Park Italian Sausage vendor who is now a prospect in the White Sox system. We hope to do at least a couple more of these this offseason.

I still wouldn't quite give up on Thompson, but my faith has been in a steep drop for a while. Engel is in a similar mode to other toolsy OF's who haven't put it together - Thompson, Mitchell, Walker. Though Engel is faster than all those guys, and has more raw power than Walker.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Oct 8, 2014 -> 08:14 AM) I would guess that most would be of the belief that Johnson might never pitch for the Sox again...and that one of Sanchez/Semien/Micah, if not two, will end up either traded or simply not making it. For right now, you could see Micah as the eventual starter, Semien at 3B/LF/DH and Sanchez in the Leury Garcia role for 2015....and I mean 2nd half of 2015, since Micah Johnson undoubtedly needs more seasoning at AAA and to prove his hamstrings are 100% again, since speed is his only plus tool at the moment. They might want to try the approach of the Royals with Terrance Gore and have them spend their (Johnson/Semien) offseason bunting as much as possible. Both Johnson/Semien are better hitting prospects, yet going to this approach has seemingly had a positive effect on Gore, and might help cut down on their K rates. Gore, 23, was a 20th-round Draft pick from Gulf Coast Community College in 2011. He has a career .237 batting average with zero home runs in 1,048 at-bats in the Minor Leagues and may never spend a full season in the Major Leagues. It's telling that when he was sent to Surprise, Ariz., for Instructional League last year, he was given orders to bunt every time he came to the plate. Just as significant is that Gore welcomed the chance to work on that part of his game. "I bunted the whole month,'' Gore said. "Literally I didn't swing a bat at all. It was fun. It made my game so much better. It showed me all you have to do is bunt the ball a little bit. That's got to be my primary thing to do in baseball. I'm not swinging the stick, not hitting home runs, but bunting improves everything. When I start bunting, I kid you not, I literally started hitting the ball really hard. I saw the ball hit the bat. My swing is the same way. It improves all kinds of stuff in your skills.'' Gore's speed is, literally, off the charts. Jarrod Dyson, the Royals' center fielder, runs to first base in 3.6 seconds from the left-handed batter's box. Gore gets there even quicker from the right-handed batter's box, clocked at times at 3.5. The top rating on the scale used by scouts is 80, but Gore is faster than the standard required for an 80. Billy Hamilton, the Reds' National League Rookie of the Year candidate, set a Minor League record with 155 stolen bases in 2012, and White Sox prospect Micah Johnson swiped 84 in '13. Gore, with 168 steals in 330 games, hasn't had a season when he stacked stolen bases on top of themselves like that -- he had 52 steals this season -- but the potential is there. Dayton Moore identified Gore as a potential stretch-run, postseason difference-maker long ago, which is why he promoted him to Omaha in early August. He wanted Gore to work on getting jumps against more experienced pitchers on his way to Kansas City. www.mlb.com (Phil Rogers) Putting Semien on a bunting spree makes no sense. His key offensive ability is getting on base, and he's shown some power as well. He's got better than average speed but he's not a big time burner. He should only be bunting rarely at most. With Micah it makes more sense because if he gets good at it, that can be a key offensive weapon for a guy who likely won't hit for much power. And getting on base is that much more key for a guy with his speed.

Also, Cleuluis Rondon will be playing in Venezuela with Leones.

Larry from SSS reporting that Adam Engel, Nick Blount and Terance Marin will be playing winter ball in Australia with the Melbourne Aces.

Basto at 1B. Probably just trying to get him playing time, still though, he's never played there.

QUOTE (Y2JImmy0 @ Oct 8, 2014 -> 08:14 AM) I think it's pretty obvious that Tim Anderson and Courtney Hawkins will both be at Birmingham next year with Danish and Montas in the rotation. That's going to be a really fun team. If Montas stays healthy and continues to develop that 3rd pitch, he will move really fast. I mean he's already going to be at AA. I think that Bassitt is a bullpen arm as well that has the chance to be real good in that role. I'd agree that Birmingham could be a really fun team to watch next year. Rotation likely includes Montas and Danish, plus some combo of Recchia/Bucciferro/Wendelken/Jaye (Recchia may start in AAA, Wendelken may go back to relief) to make up what should be a pretty solid rotation. The lineup should include Anderson, Hawkins and Coats, but the rest of the lineup I'm not sure will be that great. May and Barnum don't look ready to me, DeMichele just hasn't put it together, Heisler is an org guy... Narvaez might be something.

First game... Bassitt: 2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K. 22 of 27 pitches for strikes (the key to his success) Smith: 1-4, 2B, K.