Lillian

Collins really hasn't done much lately, either. Unless Rutschman somehow miraculously falls to us, McCann is probably the guy to resign and keep into his early 30's. At least he is a very good defensive catcher, who seems to have figured out how to be a smart hitter. He won't keep us his current pace, but he doesn't need to be anymore than a .270 hitter, with a little pop.

Well, if he were in this year's Draft and I were picking, I'm not sure I'd rank him in the top 10. Either this year is a stronger top of the Draft, or the Sox screwed up.

Interesting to consider the difference in potential value, between Madrigal at pick #4 and Vaughn at pick #3. And to think that Vaughn is not even our consensus pick. It makes last year's selection of Madrigal look really questionable. If you remember, I wanted India. The Sox better not screw this one up, as this could be the last time they get a pick, anywhere close to this high. The more I think about last year's pick, the more frustrated I become. What was Madrigal's upside? A guy who made contact and didn't strike out, with good defence, but only at 2ND. I want a potentially big impact bat, if I'm selecting a position player, with the #3, or 4 pick. If no players with that kind of profile are there, take a pitcher.

One has to question this notion that the only way to succeed in free agency acquisitions is to go after the top tier guys. So far this season, the best signings were Brantley, Adam Jones, Avi and Moustakas. None of them were in the same tier as Harper and Machado and certainly none of them received potentially crippling contracts, for their respective franchises. Harper and Machado have both been among the worst free agents acquired, based upon the amount of money they received. In the final analysis, it comes down to player evaluation and luck. Simply being willing to spend the most money, is not the most important criteria for success. Based upon risk versus reward, one could argue that the second tier guys are a better choice.

Given the way Machado is underperforming with that contract, maybe J.R. is right. We are almost one third of the way through the season and Manny is 72ND in RBI's, among all Big Leaguers. Harper isn't living up to expectations either. They certainly are not the "young stars" of the game, which everyone seemed to think they were. Bellinger, Yelich, Bell and Springer have grabbed that mantel, while Harper and Machado have suddenly become after thoughts, for this year's All Star game. If you had to base the vote on this year's performance, neither one of them would make the team.

I agree. They would constitute 2/3 of the outfield, with Eloy taking the 3RD spot, in LF. The best part of Robert and Basabe being the two to emerge as legit prospects is that they are the only two really outstanding defensive guys, with good arms. That would be the best way to "hide" Eloy's sub par defence, in Left. The disappointing part of the other outfield prospects having such poor seasons is that they aren't going to generate much interest from other clubs. I had hoped that they would at least be good trade bait. Maybe Walker will step up, and we still may end up taking an outfielder, with the 3RD pick in the Draft. You know that I like Bleday. Interesting though, how that outfield "log jam" has pretty much disappeared.

Bleday was 2 for 5, with another homer today. That was his 20TH, in the last 35 games and this one was in Tournament play. He leads the nation, with 26 home runs. The California vs. Oregon State game was postponed, so no Vaughn or Rutschman results.

I understand that, however those who have advocated trading Abreu, for the last couple of years, have usually mentioned that he had little trade value, primarily because he is a right handed hitting, first baseman. Again, I love Jose and think that he is the best hitter on the Sox. My point is that there should be other considerations, when evaluating the Draft, besides how good the various players are, in terms of their skill sets. Perhaps the best example is the one I cited, i.e.; Player A may be the best hitter in the Draft, however if he plays a position that is not very highly valued and, or hits right handed, he may be less valuable than another candidate, who is not quite as good of a hitter, but plays a premium position and hits left handed. This less tangible component of evaluation is often alluded to, however few want to really attempt to quantify it. Perhaps that's why a guy like Vaughn, who many claim is the best hitter in this class, may end up going 6TH. Yet no one would put any numerical grade on that factor. At any rate, I still prefer a guy who plays a more valued position, and hits left handed, to Vaughn, even if he is graded a notch lower, as a hitter, than Vaughn. If the consensus is that Vaughn is a significantly better hitter, then I would be in favour of selecting him, but if it's close, I'd prefer someone else.

To reiterate something I suggested, in a previous post; maybe they need to add some ranking component that reflects "value". When trying to determine the "best player available," it would be helpful if there were some quantifiable factor, such as cost of acquiring a comparable established player in free agency, or similarly, what his expected trade value would be, if he reached his potential. If Vaughn became as good of a hitter as our Jose Abreu, what would we have? I love Jose, but some here have argued that he has had very little trade value, precisely because his profile is of a slow footed, right handed hitting first baseman, albeit a very good hitter. If Vaughn produced like Abreu has, and that is likely a best case scenario, would we be similarly assessing his value, at some point?

The recent Baseball America Mock Draft is exactly where my obviously unqualified ranking sits: Rutschman, Witt Jr., Abrams, Bleday and Vaughn. Vaughn had another good day, yesterday and it's obvious that he continues to be pitched around. He was 2 for 2 with 5 walks. That's what I said; "5 walks". He is indeed probably the best hitter in this Draft and I could care less about him being only 5' 11". I just can't rank a right handed, first baseman, at the top of the Draft. For those who would quickly assert that Frank Thomas was a right handed first baseman, my reply is that Andrew Vaughn is almost certainly not going to be another Frank Thomas. In fact, few players have, or will have, careers like the Big Hurt. It's just that a great hitting, right handed first baseman is not that hard to find and does not represent a comparable value to a team, that a middle infielder, catcher, top of the rotation starter, or centerfielder does.

I'm beginning to wonder what is really going on with Alonso. He has never been this bad.

+++++++ THANK YOU

Most of us are frustrated with Alonso being given so many starts, in the middle of the order, given his awful performance at the plate. It just highlights how badly this team needs a potent left handed bat, which you all know that I covet. Now that Eloy is back, the middle of the order is far too right handed. Moncada is the only real power threat, who can hit from the left side. Thus, we are likely to continue to see Yonder hitting in the middle of the order. Like most of you, I'm ready to just cut ties and let either Skole or Palka take his place.

There is no point to giving away Castillo. As long as he is getting paid, they might as well keep him, until his contract expires. He at least provides insurance, in case McCann gets hurt. However, I agree that James should get most of the playing time, with Wellington simply providing the necessary rest.

Does this comparative analysis of Bleday and Vaughn look correct to you?: Vaughn - Good defence, but at perhaps the least desirable position. Bleday - Good outfield defender with a good enough arm to play RF Vaughn - Slow footed Bleday - Faster than Vaughn, but just average speed for a corner outfielder Vaughn - Best, most advanced hitter in the Draft, with great contact and power skills, plus good eye. 53 walks to 30 K's, this season. One negative is that he hits right handed. Bleday - Outstanding hitter with power. 25 homers this year has answered any questions about his power. Left handed bat represents significant value added. Vaughn probably has a better chance to be the first, in this year's Draft, to make it to the Majors, but Bleday isn't far behind. Which player has performed better against tough competition? Both play in top conferences, but the non-confernce games could provide some insight. Earlier in the year, someone remarked that Vaughn had not performed well versus better teams.

How much money would you expect the Sox to be able to save by picking Bleday, instead of Vaughn?

Not having the benefit of sufficient exposure to other baseball broadcasters, makes it difficult to compare. However, if some of those highlights, which play during breaks, on the MLB.com broadcasts, are any indication, I would find many of those particular announcers very annoying. I especially dislike some of the hyperbole. Have any of you noticed the commentary on that clip, where Jeter intercepts a relay throw to the plate, just a little in front of the plate, on the first base side? He grabs the ball and shovels it to the catcher, who tags out the runner. It doesn't appear to be a very remarkable play, beyond the "heads up" nature of Jeter's having positioned himself in the right place to make the play. Nevertheless, the announcer is just completely over the top with "Oh, one of the most unbelievable plays, you'll ever see a short stop make". It's just stupid. I often think, I could of made that play myself, if I happened be standing there, that close to the plate. It wasn't a difficult ball to catch and it was only a short distance to flip the ball to the catcher. Actually seemed quite unremarkable. So many announcers seem to think that they have to scream and exclaim how "unbelievable" such plays are, even when they actually aren't. Our duo isn't especially guilty of that, and I appreciate them, for it. Here is the video:

Do any of you have the new Baseball America top Draft rankings and scouting reports? I just received an email, informing me that they have a new report, however I don't subscribe.

We might expect Eloy and Palka, to replace Delmonico and Rondon. It's probably too early to hope for the front office to DFA Alonso, or Castillo. However, we should have reasonable expectations that they will figure out some way to cut ties with both, before the season is over. Everyone here seems pretty confident that the front office will not allow themselves to get stuck with Yonder's vested option. In the meantime, perhaps they can get by with Leury serving as the back up middle infielder, and let Tilson patrol CF, where his range and defence would be critically important, if they have both Eloy and Palka, at the corners. Palka could platoon with Cordell, who could also be a defensive replacement, for Daniel. In any case, if Palka stays hot, you can bet he will get called back up. At least until Alonso is gone, I'd like to see the following lineup, versus RH pitching, with this balance of RH and LH hitters: SS Anderson 3B Moncada DH Abreu RF Palka LF Eloy 1B Alonso C McCann 2B Yolmer or Leury CF Tilson

Look at the return on investment that Michael Brantley and Adam Jones are providing. Those would have been great signings, if you want to second guess the off season. I understand that they would not have been part of any long term plan, but those contracts have turned out to be very rewarding, so far. Oh well, Hahn did sign McCann, so I guess he deserves credit for that one.

I assume that you were joking and that you know "IL" is International League. Just thought I'd clarify, for anyone confused by the post.

This quote from Fangraphs is confusing to me. Isn't the scenario, which is explored here, only valid if Abrams is actually slotted 6TH?: "Since Abrams would likely slide to the sixth pick if he doesn’t go third, there may be some pool money saved here (about $1.5 million based on the gap in slot between this pick and the sixth). That money would go a long ways toward tempting another mid-first round, high-upside prep talent to the White Sox next pick at 45, as the savings plus their overage would be a late-teen’s value slot."

Why?

He had 35 at bats, with the Sox, this season. How is that a sufficient sample size, upon which to conclude anything?

Before dismissing the idea of bringing back Palka, perhaps one should look at his numbers,at Charlotte. They are quite impressive, in any ball park. Moreover, he did have an impressive rookie year. To discount all of that, simply because he struggled early on, this year, seems irrational. Remember, he suffered that hamstring injury, which kept him from getting his work in, during Spring Training. At any rate, I would expect him to get called back up soon, and certainly before Collins. The real obstacle is Alonso.