Y2Jimmy0

This is extremely disingenuous to say when Roch Cholowsky had the sophomore year that he had. Go look at Vahn Lackey's sophomore season. No s%*# he improved on it. What are we doing?

Again though, he had basically the same season as last year and he was the hunted this time.

They're going to save plenty of money regardless though. Even if they sign Cholowsky for $10 million; they'll save $1.3 million. Add the 5% overage and money from rounds 8-10 and it's basically $2.5 million in savings overall.

I think catcher is risky. There's just so much more to worry about. Game calling, defense etc. Also, development isn't linear and they often take forever. Adley Rutschman was a can't miss prospect. They also don't play that often and the league is leaning toward using multiple catchers. I'd be pushing for a Montgomery extension right now but I just don't really consider that when making this selection at 1. Take the best guy. I think the best guys are both shortstops and they'll both cost around the same so I'd take the college player in this case. I think Cholowsky is an entertaining and dynamic player. Why is Lackey more entertaining? I don't really get that. I do worry that the fanbase will be incredibly difficult on the player if it's anyone other than Cholowsky at this point. There's no way that Vahn Lackey is going to be more exciting to the majority of the fanbase than Roch Cholowsky would be; if that's a thing.

I think Lackey would be cheaper than that. Possibly under $9 million depending on when he's expected to go. He's also the only non Wasserman option so that's a factor. If they took Lackey though, it's clearly as the cut option to spend money elsewhere in the draft and taking him 1.1 and then moving him off catcher would be crazy. He's the most athletic catcher in the draft in a long time and just because he could move, doesn't mean he should. I think calling Roch just solid is missing things though. Him being a plus-plus defensive shortstop is a major factor in the profile. He has pretty significant offensive upside with a floor of definite big leaguer and he's the most likely guy of the group to reach his ceiling in my opinion. The Sox will factor in the NCAA tourney, private workouts, player interviews and make a decision. I think they'll lean college because of their core and the inherit pressure that an ownership change could bring basically at any time. It could be Emerson but I just don't get the sense that they want to wait for him to develop. I think taking a catcher at 1.1 would be really risky and they'll ultimately take Cholowsky but I do think it'll end up being between those two players now. I didn't think this a week ago and I might change my mind again.

Congrats

I think that we start hearing Vahn Lackey more. From what I've heard, it's a potential discount option for the White Sox at 1. Lackey is awesome. If I had the third pick, I'd be debating Lackey and Lombard pretty heavily. I'm just not a big fan of taking a catcher that high.

Something funny about Roch Cholowsky. He hit .125 last week. I've heard some use that as a negative. He also had a .500 OBP. The .125 was basically 1-8 lol with a bunch of walks and HBP. The microanalysis of this dude is nuts.

The same pitching can be found in rounds 11-20 in most cases and those players usually get paid more than guys in 7-10. Nobody is reaching. High School players cost money though and the money has to come from somewhere. Especially if you spend slot value in the first round. Look at last year specifically, slot for Carlson at 1 and they went significantly overslot in rounds 2, 4 and 5. Saved money in 6-10. They went over for Boughton in the 11th and drafted pitchers like Max Banks who are similar to anyone they would've gotten in 6-10 anyway. It's all about how many players you can land with your pool space and the looking at the totality of the draft class.

Tim Elko was one of those punted picks. It's just the wrong way to look at the draft. I always put the players in order by signing bonus. Many players taken in rounds 11-20 are more highly regarded than guys in 7-10. If you want a player that is signing for $50K, it makes sense to do it rounds 7-10 and re-allocate that bonus pool space. Everyone in rounds 11-20 can get $150K without penalty. It's just important to understand how the draft and bonus pools work. Roch Cholowsky has an incredibly high ceiling too. Perennial All Star SS with plus defense is his ceiling. The reason why the floor argument comes into play is that he's a definite big leaguer but I also believe that he's the most likely guy to reach his high ceiling. Jacob Lombard has a higher ceiling. He also has a way more difficult path to actually reaching that immense ceiling. Taking Roch Cholowsky is a no brainer for me.

Easy decision for me. I could be talked into Emerson for a discount but I think he'll cost around the same as Cholowsky.

2025 Golden Spikes Season: .353/.480/.710, 23 homers, 14% walk rate, 9% strikeout rate. 2026: In 12 less games, .330/.475/.684, 21 homers, 13% walk rate, 13% strikeout rate, 34K/34BB/23HBP. Chase rates improved, exit velocities stayed same basically. Higher strikeout rate, slightly worse walk rate while being avoided for a good majority of the season. The difference is miniscule and it's all such a small sample.

Roch Cholowsky has essentially had the same season as last year when he won Golden Spikes. Where is that article from, Caulfield? I was pretty certain that the White Sox were going to take Griffin and I'd been in contact with the Griffin pre-draft. It would be interesting to find out that he didn't want to play for White Sox.

Berroa was throwing in Arizona for months. The next part of the rehab was pitching in games. What should they have done instead? Austin Hays is always injured. It's why he was so cheap. I'm guessing he'll be injured again too.

oh yeah my bad. 2025 was fine.

Heard them heavily linked to Konnor Griffin all spring. He would've been a discount. Scouts had questions about the swing (Ryan Fuller not in org yet), analytics dept didn't like Cags and medical team flagged Wetherholt. Getz made decision to take Hagen Smith. Looks like a mistake.

I think the amateur scouting is really good. Drafting strategy in 2025 was definitely questionable though. Yesavage wasn't in same tier as Hagen as a prospect. Hagen looked like a quick moving college arm.

The only picks that can be traded are: 30. Royals, 31. DBacks, 32. Cardinals, 34. Pirates, 37. Rockies, 69. Tigers, 70. Reds, 71. Marlins, 73. A's and 74 Twins. Quero is super young with options. DFA talk is nuts.

It's not a floor pick. This is what I've said though: How high does someone else's ceiling have to be to pass on the floor that Roch provides? Cholowsky could be a perennial All Star SS with plus defense and power and he could be in the majors by midseason 2027. Him being to the majors quickly and the defense is the floor. Emerson hits left-handed and probably has the better hit tool. He's not quite Bobby Witt Jr but pretty awesome for a prep guy. Could have a higher ceiling than Cholowsky. Also less likely to reach it but pretty safe bet for a star high school guy. Jacob Lombard has the highest ceiling of them all. 70 power and speed with plus defense at shortstop. He could be Manny Machado. But he might not get out of AA. I hope this helps.

100% coming. They do like Lombard. I'd be really surprised by that pick though because he won't be that cheap.

Yeah it just doesn't matter all that much. Whoever the Sox decide to take won't be turning down what they offer. And they likely don't seriously start talking money until like 24-48 hours before the draft.

Batting average is worse on Fridays for sure. .900 OPS still though. How is Grady Emerson doing on Fridays playing against teenagers from tiny catholic schools in Texas? I guess I'm struggling to measure the importance of these small sample size stats. Nobody ever mentions Vahn Lackey's sophomore season.

You should tweet these numbers so I can retweet them without stealing it haha

Great post.

I never thought Colson was a bad shortstop. I always thought he could stay there. People who thought otherwise didn't watch. Bonemer might legit be 1B or LF though.