BearSox

Everett Williams, OF, Prep (Texas) - 5'10", 195 lbs. (Bats L | Throws R) Scouting Report Strengths: Is very athletic and toolsy, but is a bit polished. Has some good pop and very good speed. Is very good in Center Field, gets good read, has excellent range, and has an average arm. Negatives: Swings through the ball sometimes and has a tendency to strike out. Will he hit enough to make it in the pros? Scouting Report Links http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/events/draft/y2009/...ontent=williams http://baseballfactory.com/top100/?page=1 (no. 13) http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/draft...009/268181.html Statistics Senior (2009) - Can't Find Them. Junior (2008) - .480 AVG | 13 HR | 58 RBI | 19 SB Sophomore (2007) - .430 AVG | 13 HR | 56 RBI | 15 SB Freshman (2006) - .410 AVG | 4 HR | 25 RBI | 12 SB Bio http://www.aflacallamerican2008.com/everettWilliams.asp Video Projected Draft Slot Mid-Late 1st Round (could slip into the comp round A, but if he does, he won't last long) Player Comparison A combo of Michael Bourn and Corey Patterson. Best case scenario is perhaps a Curtis Granderson type player. My Take There's been a lot of talk of use being interested in Williams and quite a few places have him going to us with pick 23 in their mock drafts. However, I would not be a big fan of that. If he falls to 38, that's a different story, but at 23, that's just too big of a risk on this guy. He might turn into a good player, but there's always the possibility of him becoming the next Corey Patterson.

Can he play 3B?

I saw the video, and I can say with 100% certainty that I can hit a baseball better than everyone on the Hawks... hooray for me!

One day, I will replace the guy with the yellow M&M's jacket behind home plate. That's gotta be awesome going to every Sox home game with seats directly behind home plate, first row. However, actually, it might be better to be higher up to get a better view of the game.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again, it wouldn't surprise me one bit if it turned out he has been/still is on HGH. I remember reading about him a couple months ago, and it seems like his father has been really pushing for him a long time in hopes of getting a huge contract. If this is the case though, it's really not Byrce's fault, because it would be his parents using him for their gain. IMO, he's either a freak, once in 10-15 year type of player, or he has been on HGH. There's no doubt he has talent, but last year when he was 15 and a freshman in high school he already looked older than most seniors and was hitting 500 foot bombs.

I guess according to Keith Law, we've been rumored to be scouting Arnett as a possible pick at 23.

Ian Krol, SP, Neuqua Valley HS - 6'1" 170 lbs. (Bats L | Throws L) Scouting Report Strengths: Very polished for a high school lefty, has 3 solid offerings. Has a low 90's fastball with some movement, a good tight curve, and a good change, with good command of all 3. Knows how to pitch. Negatives: Was suspended for his Senior Season due to being caught drinking/being around alcohol. Is committed to Arizona and might be a tough sign. Scouting Report Links http://www.perfectgame.org/players/playerp...e.aspx?ID=68762 http://baseball.uaallamerica.com/pub/athlete/Ian-Krol Statistics Senior Year (2009) - No Stats Junior Year (2008) - 0.98 ERA | 9-1 W-L | 2 No Hitters | 1 Perfect Game | 57 IP | 111 SO | Sophomore Year (2007) - 1.13 ERA | 70 IP | 91 SO Bio http://www.aflacallamerican2008.com/ianKrol.asp http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/highs...0,7532060.story (article talking about his suspension) Video Projected Draft Slot I'd say anywhere between rounds 3-7. He could be a tough sign though. Player Comparison Non Cy Young version of Cliff Lee. My Take I don't think the whole drinking/being around alcohol scenario is that bad of a thing, as I'd estimate the amount of teenagers that drink to be in around the 75% range (and that's a conservative guess). He was ranked at the 26th best high school player by BA coming into this season, but being suspended dropped him big time. He has fallen likely out of the first 3 rounds, but perhaps in round 4 or 5, we could get a bit of a steal. Might be a tough sign, but if we pay him above slot, maybe we could get him to sign. He is a local product, and playing for the home town team might be tough to pass up as well.

QUOTE (Thunderbolt @ Jun 3, 2009 -> 10:00 AM) Heren was freaking on last night. That cutter was unhittable. Okay, here's the plan... we get Josh Byrnes filthy drunk. Then, we convince him to trade Dan Haren for a package of Poreda, Allen, Shelby, Colon, and Gilmore. A rotation of: Buehrle, Haren, Danks, Floyd, Richard... that's just pure awesomeness.

I've never been a fan of Law. It's completely ridiculous to have Scheppers falling out of the first round. He's still got a shot at the top 10 from everything I've seen. I can't see why he would fall so low, and some team in the 20's would love to take a chance on an arm like his (if he's healthy). Williams, I like him the most of all the toolsy athletic HS outfielders (besides Trout), but he K's a lot. But he's more polished than the usual HS player and has a nice swing. Fuentes (who is Carlos Beltran's nephew I believe) has been rising fast, but I doubt we see him in the first round. If we draft Mike Minor, we're going back to our old way of drafting "safe picks." Minor is a polished pitcher, but he has mediocre stuff. Heckathorn has a really good arm, but is very raw and would be a project. I'll do a draft report on Minor, Heckathorn, and Williams today.

Somehow... we must get Dan Haren!!!

QUOTE (kyyle23 @ Jun 3, 2009 -> 08:11 AM) That left field wall is the closest to zero gravity that the MLB has That, and New Yankee Stadium. Especially to RF.

Kevin Joyce, Illinois State Representative. I believe the 35th district. He's a democrat, but was one of my football coaches last year and is a really cool guy.

I'm gonna do a couple more draft profiles tomorrow and start on my mock draft... I think the first profile I'll do is locl product Ian Krol.

does anyone else find it sad that Roy Halladay's 133 pitches thrown tonight is the most by any pitcher in the MLB since last year? Hawk and Stone were talking about it today, and it's really stupid how pitchers are babied now and in result, some pitchers actually lose stuff and have their arms weakened. I agree with Stone 100%. While maybe you shouldn't work pitchers as much as you did 20-30 years ago and beyond, there's no reason why pitchers shouldn't be able to average at least 120 pitches a game and even get up into the 150 range. I understand you want to be cautious with all the money that goes to pitchers, but more and more teams will hopefully go to a more old school way of thinking when it comes to developing pitchers. With guys right out of high school, you could/should baby them some. However, once they turn 20 or 21, there is no reason why they can't average 120 a game and not only stay healthy but build up their arm.

QUOTE (SoxFan562004 @ Jun 3, 2009 -> 12:52 AM) I'm pretty sure he is, someone on the board needs to confirm According to Wiki, he is... bummer.

QUOTE (SoxFan562004 @ Jun 2, 2009 -> 11:26 PM) his OPS+, which is ballpark adjusted, has always been good, the guy is legit. Would love him on the Sox, but he's a Boras client, so it would have to break a huge trend s***, he's a Boras client? Well, there goes that idea, unless he fires Boras for some reason.

I've been a bit critical of Holliday in the past because I never got the chance to see him much, and his numbers screamed of him being a product of Coors (and there's no doubt he benefited from playing half of his games there), but after watching him and studying him these past two games, I'm becoming a big fan. He's got a really nice looking swing and I really like his approach at bat. Plus, he's got speed for a big man, and his D has really been improving as he's been playing a damn solid LF this year. I love JD and would hate to see him go, but I wouldn't mind seeing us let JD go, sign Holliday to a 4 or 5 year contract, bring JT back for one more year, and move Q to RF. We improve our D in the OF, get younger (Holliday will be 30, but still, that's 6 years younger than Dye), and get faster. Plus, Holliday provides more OBP than Dye.

QUOTE (Kenny Hates Prospects @ Jun 2, 2009 -> 01:23 AM) -Try to deal for Scott Rolen. Rolen is injury prone, but he played 115 games last year and hasn't missed any time this year. Rolen is due $11M option next year which the Jays really do not want to pay, and over the offseason the Jays were rumored to have been offering talent simply to take on that contract. My idea would be to see if the Jays will take back Contreras' contract for this year and eat about $5M next year in return for Fields and a package of pretty good prospects but not our great prospects. That way, we'd have Rolen this year while only adding $1M to the payroll, and we'd also get him at $6M next year. The Jays would save a total of $7M by doing this and would pick up some talent. Then we could bring Juan back at $1M again for 2010 or find another suitable backup for the same price, which would give us Rolen/Uribe as a 3B for $7M in 2010. The main reason I would really like this deal is because it would buy us another year for Viciedo's development without us having to sign a 3B for a 2-3+ year deal over the offseason. I'm sure other 3B will sign for a lot less over the offseason, but I still don't see a guy like Crede or Beltre signing a 1-year deal unless it has vesting options that could guarantee it for much longer (ala Maggs' contract with Detroit, except much cheaper annually). No to Uribe, but I really really really like the idea of trading for Rolen. However, I don't see the incentive for the Jays to trade him in season when he's really helping them compete in that divison. Bautista has been hitting really good for them, but do they think he can keep it up and play solid D at 3B? The only way I see them trading Rolen this year is if they continue to scuffel for the next month and really fall behind in the East and decide to get rid of some of their older more expensive players. However, Rolen would look sexy at 3B in a White Sox uni right now. He's not the player he once was, but he can still for a good average, has some pop left, and is still a stud defender. Plus, he's quite the athlete and can still swipe a few bags here or there. And, he's a savvy baseball player as well.

I love me some Colby Rasmus...

Trading for Todd Ritchie. Trading for Nick Swisher. The constant belief that Jerry Owens could play baseball.

QUOTE (lostfan @ Jun 2, 2009 -> 10:55 AM) Not sure if you're being sarcastic or not but that's pretty impractical. I also read that this douchebag is being charged with first-degree murder and 15 counts of engaging in a terrorist attack. Does Arkansas have the death penalty still?

Ronald Reagan, Abe Lincoln. Both Goldwaters. Dwight D. Eisenhower. I also liked Silent Cal. None of the current politicians really appeal to me. Ron Paul would be good if he wasn't so crazy. I like Peter Boulware (yes, the football player).

QUOTE (Texsox @ Jun 2, 2009 -> 08:39 PM) Well yes I am. Lau, more than just about anyone, revolutionized hitting by teaching the release of the top hand and getting a better extension. Brett, Thomas, McGwire are just a few guys who have credited Lau. Walt Hriniac (spelling??) basically was a devote and continued that with Sox hitters. I really don't understand this philosophy. After you make contact with the ball, what you do afterwards has no effect on where the ball goes. I really don't care if you follow through with one hand on that bat or both, as I believe it has no effect on the ball. However, that's not to say Lau's other teachings are bad or anything, as he obviously was a great hitting coach. But, I'll take Ted Williams' book over Lau's anyday of the week.

QUOTE (JPN366 @ Jun 2, 2009 -> 05:05 PM) Where would Morel play? SS, if we really wanted to call him up. Because of his bat being such a question mark, him showing his ability to play multiple positions would only help him. I wonder who is next to go up to Charlotte though. I don't expect to see Contreras up on the big league roster for more than one start unless he shows big time improvements. If Contreras does go back down to AAA, Viciedo might make sense to promote if he keeps improving. He'll have a Cuban friend with him. Allen is close to getting a promotion as well, as he's done nothing but get better each year.

Tejada makes very little sense. However, I'm not buying that the White Sox scout there was complete coincidence and KW didn't find out until after. I firmly believe we were either scouting someone on the Astros, or whoever they were playing on that day. Lets look who the Astros have on their 25 man roster that we might be interested in: First off, I'm ruling out all young and/or cheap guys with high upside, and Lee and Berkman. Obviously we want a vet starting pitcher to replace Colon's spot in the rotation (I'm eliminating Richard from trade talks). The only guy the Astros have that really fits that mold is Oswalt, and it seems unlikely that he is coming here. Perhaps a lefty reliever to replace Gobble? They got one guy, Tim Byrdak who looks very meh. But if he would be easy to acquire, I'll take my chances with him over Gobble. Maybe we were scouting Quintero as a backup catcher but instead went with Castro. Not many other players on their 25 that seem like someone we'd be interested in.