Lillian

That is still a possibility, depending upon whether, or not, they resign Abreu, what they do with Davidson and how fast the crop of other young outfielders develop.

It does sound like he is talking about Madrigal, in that context. If that is the case, perhaps the 2020 infield will see Madrigal at 2ND, Anderson at SS and Moncada at 3RD. Works for me. Madrigal becomes the lead off hitter, and Moncada moves to the middle of the order, providing that much needed left handed presence. Those are 3 very speedy guys and 2 of them with power. Now, you stick Eloy, Collins and Abreu in there, and yes I want Abreu extended, and you have plenty of run production. Davidson could still be the DH, as you have Collins and Moncada to provide the LH hitting balance. Who plays CF and RF would be the only unanswered questions and the Sox have plenty, from which to choose. Heading the list would be Robert, unless he needs more time. Adolfo is my favorite for RF. Then there are all of the other guys who could vie for a spot. Gonzales, Basabe and Rutherford come to mind. Oh, the possibilities. I can't wait. It all makes watching this losing season, more tolerable.

If he can maintain a .400+ OBP, and hit 25+ homers, as the primary catcher, when he gets to the Big Leagues, he will be a very productive player. Remember, he is a catcher and a left handed bat. The key will be whether, or not, he is an adequate back stop. If he is, I wouldn't care what his strike out rate would be. A catcher, batting left handed, in the middle of the order, would be fantastic. So far this season, versus RHP his stat line is: .295 .469 .562 1.030

The way I look at it, at #4 we should get either the best college hitter, or pitcher, or the best high school hitter, or pitcher. If the Sox are stuck on taking a college player, we should at least get the best, or second best, college hitter, or pitcher. Duh. Now, the trick is finding him, as there doesn't seem to be much of a consensus. The only college pitcher, at the top of most lists, is Mize. The next 3 potential picks seem to be leaning toward Bart, Bohm, Madrigal, or Singer. Some suggest that Madrigal is the best college hitting prospect. I think the problem is that he would need to be a .300 plus hitter, with tons of walks and stolen bases to be a Major League star. That is a tall order, for any player. Guys like Bart and Bohm, or even my favorite, India could become significant contributors, by being run producers. In this age of baseball, that is easier to do. And finally, just to reiterate, I'm still convinced that Madrigal has to stay at second base, to be a plus defender. Since Moncada will likely be there for the next 5 years, Madrigal would likely be 27, by the time he would get his chance on the Sox. I like India because his bat is solid, with power and the ability to take walks. Moreover, he profiles well at either 3RD, SS or 2ND. That makes him not only a better bet to be able to contribute to the contending young Sox team, but a better trade candidate. No one is likely to give up much for Madrigal, unless they need a second baseman. If Singer is really the second best college pitcher, in this draft, I'd be very happy with him, at #4. However, how confident are we that he is indeed the second best college pitcher? Again, not much of a consensus, on any of these guys, which mitigates the value of the conventional wisdom, of taking the "best player available". "Best player," says who?

I just looked at the hitting stats for the conferences, in which Madrigal and India play, respectively. India had the best numbers of anyone in the SEC, which is arguably a tougher conference. There were a few other guys, who outperformed Madrigal, in the relatively weaker, PAC 12 Conference.

Ricky Henderson may not have been tall, but he was hardly a "little guy". He was very strong. I would compare him more to Moncada, except probably stronger. He was one of the best built baseball players, in history. Madrigal is a runt, compared to Henderson: http://www.baseballcardbust.com/2013/05/rickey-henderson-1992-score-dream-team.html

Yes, except Bonds, with that juiced, super human body, had the ability to wave that bat around, like a tooth pick. And he was choked up, on the bat, as well. That hitch would not be recommended for little guys. Regarding the competition; One would have to think that the disparity of the various conferences would significantly affect the relative performances of players. A guy from one of the best conferences, who could put up great numbers, would have to be more highly regarded than a player, who put up similar numbers, agains lesser competition. That is why I so highly regard India's performance, this year. The SEC is probably the toughest conference in college ball.

If he plays today, he should be the DH and Rondon should be at SS. He can't throw with that thumb taped up and hurting.

Those two errors, yesterday, are likely the result of his playing with the thumb, on his injured throwing hand, taped up, . He should have been removed, for the bottom of the 9TH, but with both Davidson and Leury unavailable, and Rondon already in the game, I don't know who might have taken his place. In any case, when you watch Anderson play, you can't help but muse about his potential for stardom. He has some elite tools, well suited for SS. His range, speed and athleticism, combined with a strong arm and power at the plate, make him a guy who could become great. Regarding Machado; I would guess that his wanting to play SS, has been a ploy aimed at making him more valuable, as he approaches his mega contract. As many of you have suggested, it now appears that teams will view his "insistence" on playing SS as a negative. He will almost certainly be a third baseman, for which ever team ponies up the $300K to $400K, for the next 10 years. His skill set will become more and more suitable for 3RD, than SS, as he approaches the middle, to later, years of that new contract.

Beer is very unlikely to last through the first round. He finished with terrific stats and plays in a tough conference. But then, I said that the other day.

Jenista looks like an intriguing prospect, but comparing his hitting prowess with Beer, he doesn't have the same track record. I'm wondering how Wichita's competition compares with Clemson's.

Seth Beer has been on fire, to close out the season with very good stats. I doubt that he makes it to our second round pick, but if he does, there is potentially that left handed power bat, which I covet.

I wasn't aware of the fact that something already exists. I agree that it should be up to the player, however I can't understand how a pitcher would not want protection. Would a catcher be willing to sit behind the plate, without protection? Hitters are using all kinds of protective equipment. The pitcher is arguably at more risk than a hitter. The batter is completely ready for and focused upon the incoming pitch. The pitcher is in his follow through motion, and not as focused on the ball coming back at him. As hard as hurlers throw, they still cannot quite reach the velocity, at which balls are traveling, when they leave the bat.

With the maple bats, juiced ball and velocity of batted balls, it may be time to innovate a protective head piece for pitchers. Sixty feet, six inches is just too close to the plate, in today's game. Someone is going to get killed.

And, of course, Moncada.

How would you gentlemen assess the relative opposing pitching, of the collegiate conferences, in which Bohm, Madrigal and India respectively play? To what degree do you think that factor should be considered?

Between Robert, Rutherford, Basabe, Booker and Gonzales I'm confident that CF will not be a problem, when this team is ready to contend. If the Sox draft Madrigal, either he, or Anderson, might also be added to the list of candidates. Patience, Sox fans!! Oh, and I left off Tilson, though I'm not very hopeful that he will be the answer. it would be interesting to know who most of you think will be the center fielder, in 2020. Ultimately, it is likely to be Robert, but 2020 might be a year too early.

Thank you for entertaining this notion, and helping to begin a discussion, on the subject. Yes, short arms and a shorter bat, should be able to reach the hitting zone, more rapidly, given the same bat speed, simply because the distance traversed is less. Of course, the bigger man is able to compensate by generating more bat speed and thus more power. I'd love to see an article, on the subject, but a discussion, here on this forum could be just as informative, with some of our astute posters. I hope that this discussion won't hijack the thread, but since we have been discussing Madrigal, a thorough examination of the size factor seems appropriate.

I agree completely with those who assert that Madrigal's small stature should not be viewed as a negative, much less a disqualifier. In fact, I have long suspected that there are a couple of distinct advantages to being a very small hitter. The obvious plus is that the strike zone is smaller, thus posing a bigger challenge to pitchers. The other factor is something that I have never read, but am inclined to think is valid, that is that the swing plane is shorter for a little guy. That in turn can result in a similar consequence to the oft cited bat speed. While it doesn't produce the same power, it does allow the hitter to catch up to high velocity pitches. If anyone knows more about this hypothesis, I'd love to hear about it.

You misunderstand me. I am not down on him. I merely think that he is not suited for the role, which some here perceive. He is very likely not going to be a power hitter, or a great SS or third baseman. If he stays at second, and bats leadoff, I think that he has a chance to be one of the best, in that role.

Wouldn't you love to be a fly on the wall, in the room, where the scouts and Hostetler are discussing this stuff? Thank you all for an interesting and spirited discussion. It will be fun to see what happens, on Draft Night, and then going forward with the various players' development.

Don't we need to also factor in the metal, vs. wooden bat?

Yes, he can hit. The question is, to what degree would his contact skills be diminished, if he tried to hit for power?

Some players are very versatile, owing to their wide range of plus tools. A guy like Moncada, could play anywhere. He has speed, power, a good arm and the ability to hit. Madrigal is not the kind of player, whom I view as having that flexibility. He is a prototypical, high a on base percentage, lead off hitter with plus speed and remarkable contact skills. He supposedly lacks the arm strength to excel on the left side of the infield. He lacks the power to play any outfield positions, except CF. I just don't accept his notion that the Sox will be able to find a position for him, because he is such a great player and has a baseball acumen, that is off the charts, or that he is magically going to be transformed into a Jose Altuve, amazing little home run hitter. I have stated it, a couple of times, and in different contexts; He is a potential Gold Glove second baseman and terrific leadoff hitter. If you draft him, you better use him in that role. If you have an idea that you are going to try to turn him into something else, I think that would a mistake. If he is clearly the best player available, which is debatable, and you select him, don't try to convert him into something, for which he is not suitable. If he is ultimately blocked at 2ND, trade him, when the time is right.

That's funny. touché