NorthSideSox72

Sort of surprised Castro hasn't signed anywhere yet. Thought the Sox would pick him up.

Article here, give it a read. Fun little moment with Dusty Baker included.

QUOTE (Eminor3rd @ Feb 17, 2014 -> 02:31 PM) I saw somewhere that Rodon got hammered. Anyone see the line? He struggled at first but dialed it in later a bit better. Had trouble with command both of the FB and the slider. And his FB velocity was, at least early on, well below what people were expecting from him. That all said, I wouldn't read a ton into it just yet. It was the first game of the season. He also hit 3 batters.

I think the Sox see Surkamp as a starter, so I just don't see it with him. That really only leaves Veal and Leesman in the mix. I would have figured it was Leesman, since he was solid vs LHH in Charlotte last year and has the added benefit of being a long man when needed. However, two things got in the way. First, just this morning, Scot Gregor as a guest writer on Baseball America said that Leesman is being kept a starter to compete for the 5th slot - which was a bit of a surprise. And the other factor here is, Veal is out of options. So it looks like Downs and Veal for the lefty pen slots.

So this was a little bit of a surprise... BA has a piece up (written by Scot Gregor) featuring Dan Black. Bell saying he would have put Black's chances at seeing the majors at 20% early in his career, now thinks it is 70%. Apparently the Sox do see something in him, albeit not a ton. I've said before, I think Black could find a major league role, I just don't think it is likely with the Sox.

Every discussion forum, blog or site that allows comments, has to make a decision where they want to draw the line. Many Sox sites, WSI for example, would never allow most of these discussion to even occur. On the other hand, big news sites like CNN or social media hubs like YouTube pretty much let it all fly. Does anyone really want this place to look like a YT comment stream? No way. So we draw a line. And for the record, you really have to mess up in a big way, repeatedly, to get banned from SoxTalk. I personally think Duke believed most of what he said, though I do think he'd exaggerate or pick talking points he knew would enflame to make his points. One more thing - the "freedom of speech" argument does not apply. This is a privately owned website, and SoxTalk can choose to enforce rules in any way it wants to. This is not the public square.

It should be noted, businesses can refuse customers, but that right is not without limits. As I understand it, they cannot exclude customers of a protected group for that reason specifically. Part of the puzzle here is, I am not sure gays are a "protected group" across states or jurisdictions. Someone more knowledgeable can speak to that.

To further whet your appetite, a FutureSox Spring Training Preview. Same link as in the FS forum but figured not everyone goes in there. I'll also echo that ST is a great exprience. Definitely a bucket list item for Sox fans.

QUOTE (HickoryHuskers @ Feb 14, 2014 -> 08:17 AM) I clicked on the link 20 times. Will that at least help your ad revenue? Haha, thanks, but I think it is unique page views that determines things, one per IP/day. I do appreciate the thought though.

QUOTE (winninguglyin83 @ Feb 13, 2014 -> 09:15 PM) Thanks for doing this. Very enjoyable to read. Tribune and Sun-Times just don't supply nearly enough White Sox news. And yet, those guys get paid to be beat writers. WHERE'S MY CHECKZZZ?!?!?! Just kidding, anyway, glad you liked it.

We look at some spring training stories to watch as they pertain to prospects. Enjoy.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Feb 12, 2014 -> 08:27 AM) I personally find it hard to put much stock into Pioneer League stats as is though, regardless of environments. Whereas I think you can look at numbers for guys even as low as Kannapolis and basically grade them on some sort of letter grade scale, I look at the Pioneer League (and now the Sox AZL team) as pass/fail. So many of the guys on those rosters are primarily used just as fill-ins that it's hard to put faith in those numbers. GF and Bristol are certainly hard to evaluate statistically. First, any and all rookie leagues, the numbers need to be taken with a few grains of salt - rawness, task focuses, adjustment to pro ball all have effects. In Bristol's case (now the AZL team), they are usually the younger guys too, so even more raw. GF has some filler like any team, and it is really hard to know how the org sees these guys. We also rarely see any video or in-person scouting reports. In terms of stats, not only is there league inflation, you are also talking about a rookie league where defense will generally be poor. Then there's the fact that usually, the Sox put their college guys (typically 22-23 year olds, with some exceptions) on that roster, so you have to sort of expect a stronger level of performance from them. Other teams use their PIO teams for younger, more raw guys too, so the Voyagers sometimes have an advantage that way (as a result, they are almost always a playoff team). But that doesn't mean you can't read ANYTHING from it. A strike out rate in the 30's isn't a death rattle or anything, but it is a red flag. On the other hand, showing the ability to draw walks and make consistent contact are less effected by park factors and the like, and so I think they can be indicators of potential.

QUOTE (oldsox @ Feb 12, 2014 -> 08:15 AM) Is May a better prospect than Hawkins? I bet we'll know by mid-June, barring injuries. Nowhere near Hawkins' ceiling, but I'd say he has just as much floor or maybe even slightly better floor than Hawkins. May's speed and defense mean he isn't as reliant on power as Hawkins has to be. But overall, no, May is not at Hawkins' level yet.

QUOTE (raBBit @ Feb 11, 2014 -> 10:51 PM) Can any of the FS guys (or anyone for that matter) comment on the hitting environment for Great Falls? The Pioneer League generally is one of the most prolific hitters' leagues, behind only PCL typically. As a park though, GF's Centene Stadium is actually more of a pitchers' park relative to league. Overall I'd say you should consider GF hitters' results to be slightly inflated. On the article linked, I'm a little surprised at Jacob Morris being on the list, let alone near the top. I can't easily dismiss that 34% K rate. If you want a guy in GF who looked particularly good as a hitter from the 2013 draft, I'd go with Christian Stringer. He hit .312, walked 22 times versus just 12 K's in 189 PA. And he's a guy who was drafted mostly on defense.

Leyson Septimo has signed with an Atlantic League (Ind) team, so he's gone. Only remaining MiLB FA's who were with Sox org that remain unsigned with any team: RHP Simon Castro (my guess is the Sox re-sign him) RHP Johansel Delgado (23 yo in Rk lg last year, hard to say what happens with him) 1B/OF Jimmy Gallagher (he's 28 now, and I don't see the Sox needing his services, he's a MiLB bench guy) RHP Ramon Troncoso (I don't see him back either)

Amusing as it is to read people same it was about the money, or about the development, or about the scouting, and picking ONLY ONE (LOL)... it was all the above. But I think it is worth pointing out that the organization and the system are not static. Staff has changed a lot the last few years, phiosophy in the draft has changed, they've signed 5 or 6 overslot guys the past 2-3 drafts, they've rebuilt the LatAm operations and are spending multiples of where they were a few years ago there, and Hahn has done a pretty great job this offseason (which started in July) of acquiring young, MLB-ready talent while losing next to nothing they'll need in the long haul.

Thanks for the updates, floridafan. Yikes, yikes, yikes. Glad he's ready to come back.

QUOTE (floridafan @ Feb 8, 2014 -> 10:37 AM) Still looking for my favorite, Grabe, to bounce back this year after his injury hampered season last year. Any chance you could extrapolate on that injury? What exactly happened?

QUOTE (SoxPride18 @ Feb 6, 2014 -> 03:45 PM) When are teams eligible to sign these international players? Around draft time? The new period (and new pool value) begins July 2nd. But many verbal agreements are entered into before then (which is technically not allowed but happens anyway). No signings will be announced until then. The Sox may have some money from 2013 still left though, as do other teams, so there could be signings before then. Likely no big ones though.

QUOTE (SoxPride18 @ Feb 6, 2014 -> 03:41 PM) I could honestly say that I just started playing attention to the minors a couple seasons ago so I really don't know who really any of these international signings are but from your write up, I was definitely impressed with Carlos Diaz's pitching numbers. Since he is turning 20, why hasn't he made his way to the states yet? He's the only guy I wrote about based mostly on numbers/age, so it was a bit of a shot in the dark. As for why he isn't in the states yet, there could be a number of reasons. One, he may have started his development later, maybe even signed at 18 instead of 16 or 17. Alternately, it could be his stuff just isn't that good but plays well against DSL competition. Hard to say for sure. But if he's not in the US in 2014 at all, it is likely the latter.

I wrote a little piece looking at some of the recent (2011-present) Latin American signings in the Sox system, and who to watch for to "pop" this season. Give it a read and discuss.

QUOTE (MEANS @ Feb 6, 2014 -> 11:55 AM) Bring back the 1917 uniforms, those are perfect. I'll bet they do in 2017.

QUOTE (SoxPride18 @ Feb 5, 2014 -> 01:02 PM) No way. Highest I would go is Snodgrass or Nester Molina. Those two are on different levels. Molina has, at this point, zero trade value. Sondgress has some, he's a legit prospect, and I'd be hesitant to trade him for Lobaton.

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Feb 4, 2014 -> 06:15 PM) I really hope Storm Throne pans out. Seriously, who wouldn't want to here Gene Honda saying that name as he jogs in from the bullpen?

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Feb 4, 2014 -> 03:56 PM) The Sox like to get anyone with big stuff into the starting rotation so as to develop their secondary pitches, even if they know will likely be relievers in the future. Both Jones and Reed came through as starters. Reed never started. Jones did, Petricka did, both were pretty bad at it.