Chicago White Sox

We'll get at least 1 this inning.

The problem is our system doesn't have a ton of depth, so even doing a top 5 prospect by position is tough. You almost have to combine prospects into groups. For example, here's my top 5 middle infielders: 1) Carlos Sanchez 2) Tyler Saladino 3) Marcus Semien 4) Joey DeMichelle 5) Nicholas Basto

QUOTE (justBLAZE @ Aug 30, 2012 -> 04:58 AM) Can't wait for a Beckham type 1B /not sure if serious You want KW to trade for Justin Smoak?

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Aug 23, 2012 -> 08:41 AM) But I still think he needs to start 2013 in AAA, both to give Beckham another chance (with his talent, I'm just not quick to give up yet), and to allow Sanchez to develop. The guy is 20 years old, there is no huge rush here. I agree on this. Beckham will probably be in the $2 - $3 million salary range next year. Let him start the season as your 2B and go from there. We should have both Sanchez & Saladino at AAA next season, so we've got two options in case Beckham continues to underperform. Worst case scenario, one of those guys comes up after a couple months of seasoning at AAA and Beckham becomes a very solid UT.

Sanchez also has 41 walks on the year, which is pretty amazing for a Latin player who literally turned 20 on June 29th. I get the power numbers are low, but this is a guy who should probably be in Kannapolis based on his age. He's already displayed a plus hit tool, an above-average eye (given his age), and reports say he is a very good defensive 2B. This kid will probably begin 2013 in AAA as a 20 year old. Maybe his power don't improve much, there's no way to really know, but I would expect his walk rates and defense to get even better time.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Aug 21, 2012 -> 05:13 PM) Hammerhead Johnson is speaking the truth in this thread. No he's not, he said "stats don't lie' which is completely absurd, especially for minor leaguers. Scouting is at least equally if not more important than stats when analyzing young players. Most of these guys are working on specific things and making adjustments and their stats will suffer as a result. Taking those stats in aggregate often tells very little. Breaking those stats into smaller pieces and looking for trends is much more valuable IMO, especially when scouting can be used to help explain the change in production. Hammerhead needs to check out Trayce Thompson's stats the last few months and then check his age versus the league and then read a scouting report to understand just how raw this kid was coming out of high school. The kid is progressing well and has plus power potential and athletesism. There are reasons people are excited about him, as he has a legit all-star ceiling, but everyone on this website knows he's far from a sure thing. Most systems have a prospect or two with both a high floor and a high ceiling. We do not have such player, which makes Thompson one of our top 2-3 prospects. That doesn't mean he sucks though and it definitively doesn't mean he has no chance of making it.

QUOTE (flavum @ Aug 21, 2012 -> 01:02 PM) Carlos Sanchez to AAA. Any chance...September? Source?

QUOTE (oldsox @ Aug 21, 2012 -> 09:00 AM) Dan Black still raking. He's a year older than Mitchell. If Mitchell had these numbers, this board would be lit up and Sox brass would be salivating, the Trib would be covering him, ESPN would induct him into the Hall of Fame.....Minor League POY, yadda, yadda. But his name is Dan Black, he's big so he plays first base and can't get promoted because he would interrupt the career path of Wilkins, Johnson, et al. Geez. A year older, two levels behind, he's a 1B vs a CF, has much more professional experience, and probably didn't come from a football background. Other than that, seems like a good comparison.

QUOTE (Springfield SoxFan @ Aug 18, 2012 -> 07:59 AM) Who was the 4th round pick that year? Kyle McMillen. I don't think he's pitched all year, but I can't find out why.

QUOTE (JoeCoolMan24 @ Aug 17, 2012 -> 07:55 PM) Erik Johnson continues to be filthy. 6 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 10 K. Boo on the walks, but he now has 36 K to 8 BB. That's bueno. That 2011 draft has been very good so far. Johnson & Snodgress are probably our best RH & LH pitching prospects. Walker has been unbelievable given how raw he was when drafted. All three of those guys are top 10 prospects IMO. You also have Semien and Smith, not great prospects by any means, but both have a chance to become major leaguers. Then there is Soptic, who is a big-time project, but could be an impact reliever if he ever puts it together. On top of that, we were able to turn Walters and Devenski into a major league reliever. Plus our 4th round pick from that draft has barely pitched, so he could be another wildcard if he ever comes back healthy. Given that we didn't even have a true 1st round pick in 2011, I couldn't be much happier with I've seen so far.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Aug 17, 2012 -> 02:18 PM) 2 a pinch runner Honestly, I don't see any real options that are better than Wise. I think he's go-to pinch runner when he doesn't start.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Aug 17, 2012 -> 09:26 AM) You have to be careful when calling up guys when you are in a race for the playoffs. For one thing, if they really were all that good, they probably would already be on the team, so they probably won't play much. The other thing is, you don't want to crowd the clubhouse too much and make it uncomfortable for everyone. The Sox will obviously call up a few guys, but I would be shocked if its more than 4 or 5 and that number is probably high. I agree with your general concept, but 4-5 guys is not high. We have a ton of pitching depth at AAA and I think they'll want a bunch of them for the stretch run. Omogrosso, Heath, Veal (assuming he gets sent down when Paulie comes back), Santiago, and Leeseman are seem likely as call-up IMO. Throw in Danks and that's six guys that I think will be up by the end of the season.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Aug 13, 2012 -> 09:26 PM) Leyson Septimo's are a dime a dozen. I think you seriously underestimate how few quality left-handed relievers there are in baseball. Not saying he's going to make it, but guys with Septimo's stuff aren't a dime a dozen. There's a reason he's been a multi-year project for the organization.

QUOTE (fathom @ Aug 13, 2012 -> 09:08 PM) Well, it does seem like 90% of our games come down to the last batter, so I don't blame him there. Fair enough, but the kid was throwing strikes in AAA. He just looked scared on that walk. Maybe he doesn't have the balls to make in the pros, still too early to tell, but what we saw tonight isn't the pitcher he really is. I'd hate to give up on an arm like Septimo's just because he crapped the bed a few times in his first stint in the majors. Unfortunately, if we can't find some low pressure times to use him soon, we'll probably have to cut ties with him in the near future.

QUOTE (Caesar @ Aug 13, 2012 -> 09:06 PM) We are in a pennant race. Let him suceed in the f***ing minors. He's out of options and would get claimed.

I wish Robin would find some low-pressure times to use Septimo, because this kid desperately needs to build some confidence.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Aug 13, 2012 -> 05:50 PM) Whole lotta League of Shadows stuff. Didn't everything just turn out to be Talia's back-story? Also, I could have sworn the movie basically said Ra's Al Ghul recruited Bane for the League of Shadows simply because he saved his daughter and that Bane was completely motivated throughout the movie by his love for Talia. Am I wrong here? If so, that's not a back-story, that's a cookie-cutter fill-the-blanks explanation. I still don't know why he was in love with her in the first place, which seems kind of important. Again, I could be missing something, but I was very disappointed with how the Bane story worked and they basically turned him into a glorified henchman by the end of the film.

QUOTE (SoxFan1 @ Aug 13, 2012 -> 02:27 PM) WHAT!?!?!? What was his big back-story then? Maybe I missed something, but the only thing I recall was Bane saving Talia as a child for some reason. If so, that's just an extension of Talia's story. I hope I'm wrong and I overlooked something significant.

I think you can make an argument for either player, but Wise makes more sense as the 4th OF for the rest of this year IMO. I do think he's a defensive downgrade, but Wise should be better with the bat and is a stronger base-stealer. Overall, it's probably a small upgrade for the next couple weeks.

QUOTE (JPN366 @ Aug 13, 2012 -> 01:29 PM) Brandon Kloess might be coming too. He's not on the 40, would be surprised if it were him.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Aug 13, 2012 -> 12:08 PM) Counting the recent Mitchell move, the Sox have been really aggressive moving their hitters up. Buddy Bell has really been pushing guys since he took over. While I think it's overall a good thing, I do think Mitchell & Saladino could have used more time at AA. These moves I'm cool with.

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but I think anyone who believes TDKR is the best movie ever made is either overrating it due to a recency bias or has a complete different definition of greatness than me. And I would never rule out a super-hero movie being the best of all-time. There were just too many things that bothered me througout the movie. Bane could have been an all-time great villian, but they didn't give him much of a back-story and basically turned him to another goon by the end of the film. And while I thought Catwoman was interpreted well, her series of interactions with Batman were beyond ridiculous. I wish I would have kept a list of all the other thing that bothered me. IMO, there were way too many obvious flaws for it to gain any consideration for the best movie of all-time. Again, just my opinion.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Aug 12, 2012 -> 05:12 PM) LIke anyone not named Olmedo or Hudson. So I guess you wanted Brent Morel or Tommy Manzella because those are our AAA 3B.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Aug 12, 2012 -> 11:39 AM) Wise and Danks are on the roster together for ~ 4 days. So who goes down when Konerko comes back? Also, we must be out of 40 man roster spots with the addition of Wise, which will make it difficult to call up other position players in September that may offer more unique qualities.

QUOTE (justBLAZE @ Aug 12, 2012 -> 10:40 AM) DeAza CF Beckham 2B Dunn 1B Rios RF AJP C Ramirez SS Viciedo DH Wise LF Olmedo 3B Sale P Why is Hudson on this team again? Honestly, if Robin is going to play Olmedo at 3B, then Hudson is only at the backup at one position. With a four man bench, we can't afford such a useless player. Also, I don't get the point of having both Danks & Wise on this roster. The only difference between them is Wise is a little better base-stealer. There simply won't be enough playing time for both of them.