NorthSideSox72

In truth, most of the affiliates had seasons best described as disappointing overall, but with a few individual highlights. Great Falls though had a very strong year, lots of good performances and in fact their pitching staff was historically good. That's not an exaggeration either, they were staistically incredible. See the season in review to see just how dominant and historic their pitching was. The offense had plenty of good stuff too, especially the outfield.

QUOTE (Donaldo @ Sep 14, 2016 -> 09:02 PM) Looks like the League may have Narvaez figured out... his average is plunging. 1 for his last 21, but that's also just 5 games. He wasn't going to keep hitting .340. He is what he is - a probably good backup C. But they should definitely keep playing him this September, get him as much exposure as they can so he's got a little more experience going into 2017.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Sep 14, 2016 -> 09:48 AM) The issue is that it doesn't line up at all with wage growth, GDP growth, inflation, savings rate or any of the other traditional measures. So where did the money come from, and where did it go to? This is just another in a series of numbers that don't really make sense in a package. The numbers are inflation-adjusted. But as for paralleling with GDP growth, that had grown for years with no wage growth. The rubber band was stretching, now it snapped back. Not really a surprise, some of those measures don't run in parallel exactly, even though they are tied. Money came in part from something we've seen reported for a bunch of years - corporations hoarding cash are now starting to make investments, finally.

Fall Instructs open next week. This is a developmental league for the younger prospects, and the Sox are sending quite a few of their key prospects to the league. Also some very, very young players - five of them are 16-year olds. Here's a look at who is going and why.

QUOTE (Jerksticks @ Sep 14, 2016 -> 07:38 AM) I don't buy any of it. People 18-40 are less skilled than ever. So, you don't buy a massive year-long data set conducted and reviewed by mathematicians, but you buy your personal view that people in a certain age range seem less skilled? Also, and important, skill level and pay are not necessarily linked. In fact the US economy, for good or bad, continues to drop away from hard skills in engineering and manufacturing, into softer service-side skills, which are much harder to quantify.

QUOTE (Jose Abreu @ Sep 13, 2016 -> 08:46 AM) I love how the site is overall, but if there's one thing I'd change, it would be the physical layout (if possible). A modernized feel could be more convenient Sadly we can't change the layout on ChicagoNow. That said, we regularly re-evaluate whether or not to stay with CN, versus going back independent again. There are many factors in that decision. QUOTE (bmags @ Sep 13, 2016 -> 10:00 AM) I really enjoy the roundtable pieces where you got writers from across different sites to talk on topics. Obviously, not expecting you to force those writers to always write, but I liked the format to steal from. For articles like "prospect of month" I think it'd be interesting for each to bring their spect vs. just an authoritative article. Since you are also covering the leagues by way of following the sox. I think it would be interesting to get occasional Sally league or other league notes of interesting players or happenings as you come across them. I liked the roundtable too, and we do plan to do that again sometime. Also an interesting thought on covering the leagues more generally, thanks for that.

QUOTE (WBWSF @ Sep 13, 2016 -> 09:20 AM) I would like to see a White Sox collectors site. I have a massive White Sox memorabilia collection. I would like to see what other White Sox fans have in their collections. QUOTE (Lip Man 1 @ Sep 13, 2016 -> 11:06 AM) That would be very interesting to see and read about, particularly the more valuable items or very rare ones. Mark That isn't really a FutureSox thing, but could be something for SoxNet, or even it's own blog. Could be interesting.

All- The writers of FutureSox are currently discussing new ideas and changes to existing content. So I figured, why not ask the crowd for ideas too? So if you have any thoughts on what you'd like to see us do that we don't, or changes you think could be good to what we already do, post in this thread and tell us. We will take the ideas into our discussions. This is your chance to influence things. What are your thoughts?

The Barons looked on paper to be a strong team going into 2016, with a chance to contend for the post-season. They opened the year with 8 of the team's top 30 prospects. But in the end, they fell apart. There were a few good performances, but they were the minority. Here's the season in review, looking at the good and the bad.

Based on what I knew of Johnson from his time as a governor, and looking at his policy points, I was pretty sure I was going to vote for him for President. But around the time of his Aleppo flub, I had started reading other things that were disturbing in terms of a lack of understanding of the workings of the world. The more I look, the more I can't do it. So I'm owning up to my own mistake, lol. I'll be voting for Clinton, sadly. Not happy about it, but I don't really have another reasonable choice. A ham sandwich on stale white bread isn't appealing, but it's a lot better than a pile of steaming garbage, and the third party "alternative" dish gets a lot worse the more you look at it.

The Charlotte Knights had some legit talent come through, but they also saw a ton of roster churn. Thanks to their beautiful and still-pretty-new ballpark they led of all Minor League Baseball in attendance again anyway. Here is a recap of their season performance. It was written by one of our new writers, Kevin Gabinski (B1GHurt3535), so welcome him aboard!

Hell or High Water was fantastic. One of the best movies I've seen in a long time. Bridges and Pine were both amazing, and I was especially surprised by Pine's performance. Cinematography and music were just great. Writing, characters, all of it. The main story line wasn't earth-shattering, but they took enough of a unique version of it in places to work, and it was just so well-executed all around. Highly recommend. Side/nerd note, I loved that they found not only an actual American Indian actor for a key role, but one who is in fact a Comanche too, the tribe that fit with the movie. That's hard to pull off.

QUOTE (oldsox @ Sep 10, 2016 -> 03:26 PM) Is Zangari back yet? What happened to him? If you read the recap, it will answer both questions for you.

Recap: Voyagers lose opener, 7-3. Game 2 tonight, 7:05 CT first pitch, Bernardo Flores gets the start.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Sep 9, 2016 -> 04:01 PM) With Anderson and Fulmer graduated, it is easy to make an argument for Hansen as our top prospect. Fulmer hasn't graduated. At least not by the standard we use, which is whether or not they have reached MLB Rookie status minimums (this is also what MLB.com and other publications use). This year, the graduates so far have been Anderson, Coats, Narvaez. I think that's it.

The regular season just finished last night for the last White Sox affiliate (Great Falls, who begin their playoffs tonight). So it's time for the final 2016 Prospects of the Month awards! Who among these late season performers are you most excited about going into 2017?

QUOTE (soxfan2014 @ Sep 8, 2016 -> 07:49 AM) He's a very solid catcher. Off the top of my head, I'm pretty sure his BB% was high and K% was low in the minors. Would have no problem with him being the starter depending on what we do with the rest of the holes. He has been the best, or among the best, hitters in the entire system in terms of BB:K during his time in the org. Also, his defense is not an illusion. He's been good defensively all along, with a decent arm and athletic actions. We (FutureSox writers) have been saying for a couple years, he looked like a legit backup MLB catching prospect. Just thought his time would be more 2017 than 2016, but injuries forced the timeline. He won't hit for much power, and he may not hit much at all. But he'll get his free passes, make enough contact to not hit for a horrible average, and play league average defense with the potential for better on that end. He's cheap and under control for another 5-6 seasons. He hits left-handed. He's not fast, but compared to other catchers he's average in that department, maybe a little better. He's everything you want in a backup C, really. But that's what he is, and I think he'll disappoint if he has to start for any length of time. Not many good stories with this team this year, but he's one of those few.

QUOTE (oldsox @ Sep 8, 2016 -> 09:39 AM) The Voyagers are three games into their series with Missoula, leading 2 games to 1. They played a double header yesterday, winning first game 1-0 and losing second game 9-3. Chris Comito threw a 2 hit shutout with Mitch Roman getting the lone RBI. In the nightcap, both Fisher and Silverio went 2 for 3, with 5 pitchers giving up a total of 9 hits and 6 walks. I believe they play again tonight. Actually no, they are still in the regular season. Still are tonight too. Playoffs start Friday.

We're starting our end of year reviews of each affiliate, highlighting some key performances. Here is the AZL White Sox season in review. This team didn't perform well overall, but it was a vastly different team than last year. Most of the playing time went to much younger players. Lots of intriguiing guys on the squad who were 17-20 years old. Last year's team won the League, but they were mostly led by 21-22 year old college draftees.

Matt Zaleski was a pitcher in the White Sox system as recently as 2014. Here in 2016 he's the pitching coach for rookie-level Great Falls, and he's been really good at it. His pitching staff has been by far the best in the Pioneer League, and he's been helpful in development of pitchers like Alec Hansen and Yosmer Solorzano among others. Our Rob (southside hitman) interviewed Matt recently, and they discussed those two pitchers and others, making the transition to coaching, and what he emphasizes in his work. Some really good stuff in here.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Sep 6, 2016 -> 04:41 PM) Called this a couple of days ago...the last thing they want is for Fulmer and Burdi to be rocked in the big leagues the final month, because that's going to be a huge element of their offseason marketing. 1) Fulmer and Burdi are going to be looked at as making two free agent signings 2) Putnam and Petricka will surely fix the pen, unpopular Albers sacrificed 3) Maybe Morneau stays and they have that feel good story 4) James Shields has rededicated himself in the offseason to a conditioning program to strengthen his back 5) New manager will totally change the culture of the team and lift the spirit of the fans 6) Someone will have to replace the equally unpopular Avi... You cannot seriously think this was a marketing decision. You have to be trolling or trying to stir something up.

Blake Smith is a converted outfielder. Rich Dotson, when he was the pitching coach in Charlotte, raved about him last year. Has a legit live arm. Figured he might come up this year. Should be a fun one to watch.

Recap posted Only Great Falls is still playing now - they have one more regular season game, then the playoffs.

QUOTE (SoxAce @ Sep 4, 2016 -> 09:18 PM) Solorzano gave up 0 hits as well. I'm sure some here will call him a sleeper prospect next season. Not sure he'd qualify as a sleeper. I guess it depends on your definition. He's been on the back end of our Top 30 for a few cycles now. Though I admit I don't see him on any other lists. He lacks velo, and I am guessing that scares some folks off. Or at least that was the report last year - he's still a teenager and he had a pretty low-effort delivery, so it's possible he's added a few ticks this year. I don't have any local reports to work from.

QUOTE (CaliSoxFanViaSWside @ Sep 4, 2016 -> 07:27 PM) 2 women writers for Soxtalk now ? That's impressive since Lillian is really the only female Soxtalker who posts regularly. FutureSox. and we are about to add a third. I know of only 1 other female White Sox blogger in the entire rest of that space, and we are about to have three. I'm actually kinda proud of that.