royoung

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ May 7, 2014 -> 02:02 PM) They can't. Their entire draft budget is literally $8 million dollars. That's comparable to the #1 pick slot. They would literally have to cost themselves draft picks next year or sign all of their next 9 picks to $100k contracts. Or more likely both. The dropoff in each pick/slot is enormous, that's the thing that people need to keep remembering. The Cubs draft budget is 8.35 M roughly, the slot value for our pick is 5.7 M. They can, but it would obviously be ill advised unless they wanted to punt the rest of their draft. We have a 9.5 M budget, I am not saying Rodon demands 1-1 money, but we will have to pay him more now than if Hoffman was healthy.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ May 7, 2014 -> 01:55 PM) Once the pick is made none of that matters. It's either the money on the table or back to school. And just to say it again...if he wants top of the draft money, every pick he falls is another $1 million less he could get. You are right but will the Sox roll the dice knowing there is a possibility we don't sign him? And I bet the Cubs would go over slot to get a deal done with him. Boras knows he wouldn't fall any further than the very next pick past us.

QUOTE (Y2JImmy0 @ May 7, 2014 -> 01:48 PM) He doesn't have any leverage. He signs at slot or slightly over or he goes back to NC State. That's the deal. What he means is now Boras can advertise Rodon as far and away the best college pitcher available. He can let it be known he isn't cutting any deals, if Houston and Miami pass on Rodon and Boras sees we have a choice of Rodon or somebody like Beede or Nola, he will demand more in negotiations because Rodon is clearly a better prospect than what is available at the next pick.

keithlaw ‏@keithlaw 2m RHP Jeff Hoffman of @ECUBaseball will have Tommy John surgery next week. Had been a probable top 4 pick in the draft before injury. Wow. Ok well cross him off the list.

QUOTE (bmags @ May 7, 2014 -> 09:59 AM) http://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2...college-players Loved this article. So many people instinctively view college football through a NFL Prospect lens that they did not appreciate some of these guys as much as they should. No shame in being a great college player, and Connor Shaw especially won me over last year. Dude is nails. Jordan Matthews was the only damn thing Vanderbilt had. The ONLY THING. ANd he still tore apart defenses on the reg. Jordan Matthews is going to be a very solid pro.

QUOTE (GoSox05 @ May 6, 2014 -> 11:52 AM) There was like 5 players who failed a drug test at the combine. How could you be that dumb. Some big names. Timmy Jernigan Zach Mettenberger Christian Jones Telvin Smith Anthony Johnson People were losing their s*** over Jernigan early on but on films he looks like a inconsistent motor guy. He can dominate when he wants to but most of the time he's coasting along.

QUOTE (raBBit @ May 6, 2014 -> 12:54 PM) Without trading, I don't know how much this matters picking 3rd overall. How about this, Kolek-Aiken go 1-2 and then Rodon wants over-slot... If we end up drafting Tyler Beede, even if it's under-slot, I'm going to be livid. We really could end up with any three of the trio but if Rodon is going to be an issue at 3 it can get very interesting. I feel Aiken is the most likely pick until the next wrench in the mocks pop up. I agree wholeheartedly. It's why the Hoffman setback is so damaging, not that we aren't going to have an opportunity to draft one of the top three, but their camp will recognize the drop off and take advantage of it financially. For all the talk about Rodon being a tough sign, the high school kids have all the leverage. We'll get a great pitcher, but we are going to pay slot or over.

QUOTE (DirtySox @ May 6, 2014 -> 12:00 PM) Hoffman had a setback. Not making his planned start this week. Stay tuned. Yep, disregard my previous two posts. He's going to fall down draft boards. Good news: We will get one of Aiken/Rodon/Kolek Bad news: We'll have to pay them handsomely unless we can create enough smoke to fluff up other prospects. Jackson? Beede? Newcomb?

QUOTE (bmags @ May 6, 2014 -> 11:05 AM) Scenario- Hoffman's last two starts are dynamite and sox take him at 3. Do you think they could pull off signing him for less because of injury concerns? Haha great minds, I just posted about this scenario. Yes, I think it's a plausible that the Sox just love something about Hoffman and would feel more comfortable with a college pitcher rather than rolling the dice with one of the HS kids or dealing with Boras. It makes all the sense in the world to hide that by talking up Rodon, Kolek, and Aiken to give them leverage against Hoffman's camp in negotiations.

QUOTE (raBBit @ May 6, 2014 -> 09:44 AM) I have heard Laumann say that Rodon is far and away the best player in the draft. When Laumann was saying he loved Hoffman, he probably never imagined Rodon might be a possibility at #3. Even so, Rodon still probably isn't available at #3. To be fair, it makes sense to laud all of the top prospects to keep those around you guessing on who you will pick. More importantly, it also gives you some leverage in any pre-draft negotiations that may take place. Hypothetical, If the White Sox have eliminated Rodon off their board due to signability concerns or otherwise, it makes no sense to let anyone know that. When the Sox go to a Jeff Hoffman to try and set the perimeters for a deal before their pick, it behooves his camp to play ball if the Sox are doing him a favor by giving him 1-3 money, rather than 1-4 or worse. As the difference between slot money at #3 and #4 is over a million dollars.

http://www.chicagonow.com/future-sox/2014/...montas-returns/ Recap posted

I know there has been a lot of talk about Rodon being the top choice for us, but very interesting what an "AL Central scout" had to say on him in the article I quoted. It could be a Twins guy, I suppose, but more than likely it was the White Sox. The more I read, the more I think we'll take Aiken or Kolek, with Hoffman being a wildcard based on his return from injury.

Christopher Crawford of ESPN.com highlighted Brady Aiken and Carlos Rodon today in his MLB Draft Blog. Below are some quotes of note... On Aiken... Aiken went the distance against Patrick Henry HS on Wednesday, giving up just one run on three hits while striking out nine in the complete game victory. For the year, Aiken has struck out 80 hitters and walked just seven, and has posted a 0.80 ERA for the season in 42 2/3 innings. What has impressed scouts the most, however, is his poise and feel for pitching, and both of these traits were on display once again this week. "Even when [Aiken's] stuff isn't at its best, he still impresses you," an AL West scout said. "He didn't have top-pick stuff on Wednesday in my opinion, the breaking ball was okay and the fastball command was above-average. Andjust based on pure stuff he isn't even the best prep pitcher in this class, I think that's Touki Toussaint [of Miami's Coral Springs Christian HS]. "But that's not to say that Aiken's stuff isn't fantastic, because it is. And it plays up because the kid just knows how to pitch. Having three 60 pitches [on the 20-80 scouting scale] means nothing if you can't command them, and he does it as well as any prep pitcher I've seen in this decade. There's no reason he shouldn't be a top-three pick in this draft." On Rodon.... "It was the same Rodon I saw in March and the early part of April," an AL Central scout said. "Plus slider, above-average fastball with mediocre command, average change that he doesn't throw enough. Does that sound to you anything like the No. 1 pick? It doesn't to me. Maybe I just expected too much, but after the glowing reviews I heard about Friday I thought I was going to see the same guy I fell in love with during his freshman year. I did not." It would be a surprise if Rodon or Aiken are still on the board when the Chicago Cubs select with the No. 4 pick, with both the Houston Astros and Chicago White Sox as potential suitors for their services, and possibly the Miami Marlins if they do pass on Shepherd (Texas) HS right-hander Tyler Kolek.

QUOTE (flavum @ May 1, 2014 -> 08:29 PM) Fedde who? 5 weeks to go. This draft class seems to be garbage. Well, maybe not garbage, but not the year to have the 3rd pick. They probably have just as good a chance to get an impact player at #44 or #77. What? If the Hoffman injury is serious, it only hurts the Cubs. There are three players who could legitimately go #1 overall and no one would bat an eye. Whoever falls to us at 3, get the damn deal done and we got 1-1 talent at 1-3. All will be tough signs, but thats the nature of the beast that high in the draft.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 30, 2014 -> 01:19 PM) Scott Merkin ‏@scottmerkin 8m Our Draft experts take their First-round guesses: @jimcallisMLB says Tyler Kolek, @JonathanMayoB3 says Jeff Hoffman. http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20...rticle_73746266 I'm a believer in Hoffman, but if the Sox took him over Aiken, I would be disappointed.

I was hoping Soxtalk would have a thread like this, you deliever once again. I drafted Jose Abreu in the 12th round, I have Chris Davis at my 1B, but he's currently on the DL. I just got an offer for Abreu in exchange for Max Scherzer....sell high and get the ace?

Jim Callis ‏@jimcallisMLB 10m As of now, Rodon. @DSZero: If Rodon and Hoffman are both there at #3, who do @WhiteSox take? #DraftPipeline Interesting

QUOTE (maggsmaggs @ Apr 29, 2014 -> 01:28 PM) He's been at first for awhile now, I don't really know how Stoltz can make that call about his D at 3rd. As mentioned by someone else, if he could have stayed at 3rd, he wouldn't be at first. He scouted him at Kannapolis when he was at 3B and was surprised they moved him. His point is the same as this threads, there is a 26 year old organizational guy playing 3B for the Barons, why not move him back to his original position.

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/prospect-wa...lo-and-simmons/ Unapologetic Ravelo lover Nathaniel Stolz gets to brag a bit. He is a believer in his defense at 3B as well.

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Apr 29, 2014 -> 04:17 AM) Loving that Hawkins has seemed to drastically improve his approach at the plate. Ravelo, Trayce, and Micah are all killing it. Something needs to be done with Davidson. What do you suggest? Not much the Sox can do except let him work his way out of it. He just turned 23 and he's proved himself at every level, he should be able to adjust.

http://www.chicagonow.com/future-sox/2014/...son-and-ravelo/ Recap posted

QUOTE (Eminor3rd @ Apr 28, 2014 -> 02:30 PM) Gotta say no to Hoffman at this point. I don't want ANY injury flags for a guy who is valued appropriately at the slot. In other words, I think it can make sense to go for an injury guy if his talent represents something higher than the slot that you get him (i.e. Washington and Giolito), but when he's a #3 talent if healthy anyway, I think you have to go for another #3 talent. A lot of it depends on how he pitches when he returns. He is only reportedly missing two starts. If you see a dip in velocity, change in mechanics, decrease in movement of his pitches, then sure that would raise a huge red flag. But if he comes back and pitches like normal, I can't see how you could knock him for missing a couple starts. It's understandable that Hoffman and his coaches (for his sake) would want to be as conservative as possible with the draft coming up. Better that then the pitch counts Rodon is racking up.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Apr 28, 2014 -> 10:16 AM) Please don't patronize me. You were happy the Sox bought corn in somebody's stool when they signed Paulino. It isn't pointless. I just want to know why the 2nd round pick was considered so valuable before, but now it's "the Sox will be lucky if higher picks work out, but it's not just them it is everyone". I'm not trolling, just wanting to know why people changed their minds. I always viewed the draft as a reasonable game of chance. For argument's sake, let's say that 1 out of every 10 1st and 2nd round draft picks reach or come close to their projection. So you need to endure through nine Walkers, Mitchells, Broadways, etc etc to get a Sale. You can complain about the aforementioned busts, but it doesn't mean you should stop playing the game. You need quantity in terms of picks in order to increase your odds of hitting quality. Giving away high picks and complaining that our scouting department should be hitting on less chances is not the answer.

Danny Knobler ‏@DannyKnobler 7m One scout after watching East Carolina’s Jeff Hoffman: “This guy has to be Justin Verlander’s brother.” Cubs execs were in to see him. If Hoffman's soreness is truly just soreness, similar to what Chris Sale is experiencing, I don't think it effects his stock too much. With Rodon seemingly back in 1-1 form, I expect him to go first or second, giving us a choice between either Aiken/Kolek or Hoffman. Assuming Hoffman's injury is nothing that would linger, I like him over Kolek. Aiken is still my #1 overall, but I don't think he falls to us.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 27, 2014 -> 02:06 PM) Ben Badler ‏@BenBadler 15m Carlos Rodon struck out 15 with one run over 9 IP in his last start. 26 of 27 outs were Ks or grounders. Up to 97 mph, acc to @jimshonerdBA. The old Rodon is back. Good