royoung

QUOTE (DirtySox @ Mar 23, 2014 -> 03:38 PM) I'd wager that Rodon will demand 1-1 money even at if selected 3rd. Boras is his advisor and he has the option to return to school for his senior year a la Appel if he so wishes. That's a good point. If it's actually true that he's falling down draft boards and is no longer the 1-1, it's very possible he could fall like Appel due to contract demands. It did work out for Appel so it wouldn't surprise me if Boras tries it again. In that case, I would be conflicted if Rodon is on the board at pick #3 demanding 1-1 money and theoretically Beede and Hoffman are available willing to take slot or below. There seems to be consensus that Rodon isn't as impressive a prospect as he once was considered.

QUOTE (QuickJones81 @ Mar 23, 2014 -> 07:45 PM) Pretty sure that picture for Sanchez isn't Sanchez. Yep. That's Carlos Sanchez of the Cincinnati Reds. Fail MLB.com http://www.milb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?s...&pid=570614

QUOTE (Eminor3rd @ Mar 21, 2014 -> 11:17 AM) He's got Turner all the way down at 20 I tend to agree. He's got three extra base hits this year. What's his upside? Juan Pierre? Odds are he won't hit enough to make much of an impact with his speed. Give me a guy with a shot to be a front line starter.

QUOTE (IowaSoxFan @ Mar 21, 2014 -> 11:10 AM) It is an insider article. http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/...-2014-mlb-draft Thanks! I happen to be *puts on sunglasses dramatically* an insider.

FYI, Jim Callis of MLB.com will be chatting about the White Sox system on twitter @mlbpipeline at noon. http://jimcallis.mlblogs.com/ He posted on his blog five additional prospects, a sleeper, and an interview with Tim Anderson.

QUOTE (IowaSoxFan @ Mar 21, 2014 -> 09:28 AM) Law has his first prospect rankings (top 50) for the draft up: 1 Brady Aiken 2 Kolek 3 Rodon 4 Beede 5 Grant Holmes - Plus fastball that he can run up to 98 with great feel and control. 6 Hoffman 7 Jackson Others of notw 15 Newcomb 19 Gatewood 20 Turner 39 Toussaint Do you have a link? Interesting how far Hoffman has fallen in his list, especially considering how high he was on him. I don't know much about Grant Holmes..HS arm? Looks like we have our choice of arms, fantastic news because I think that would be great value selecting that high.

Well Keith Law has a new draft crush... "Between this spring and last summer I've seen all of the top prospects for this year's draft, including Carlos Rodon, Tyler Beede, Jeff Hoffman, Alex Jackson, Tyler Kolek, and Jacob Gatewood, and I'd take Aiken over all of them. " He says that he showed four pitches, two of them plus, and projects he will have three grade 60 or better pitches when it's all said and done. 6'4'' lefty, solid build and clean delivery, could be in the mix? I'd still be shocked if the Sox go HS pitcher, but who knows.

QUOTE (IowaSoxFan @ Mar 18, 2014 -> 08:25 AM) If I were to project a top 5 today it would be: 1 - Houston - Rodon - Rodon is down a little, but pairing him with Appel will be very appealing 2 - Miami - Kolek - Miami loves HS players with big upside, Kolek is that 3 - Sox - Hoffman - Pedestrian numbers this season, but the stuff is elite and he has the frame to be successful over the long hall. 4 - Cubs - Beede - Beede's arrow is pointed up and the Cubs are starved for pitching. Beede could be the fastest riser as a pro. 5 - Minnesota - Alex Jackson - Twins continue their trend of selecting prep players grabbing the top prep bat in the class. If Hoffman turns his season around I think that's an ideal situation for the Sox. I believe Rock said that Hoffman aced his interview with the Sox and there is big organizational love for him. If he continues to struggle, I wouldn't be surprised if Beede wouldn't surpass him, if he hasn't already.

QUOTE (IowaSoxFan @ Mar 16, 2014 -> 06:30 PM) Through this weekend Rodon - 6.2 IP 5H 2R 2ER 4BB 12K 1HBP Season - 2.45 ERA 36.2 IP 27H 15R 10ER 11BB 42K Beede - 7.1 IP 3H 2R 0ER 1BB 7K Season 0.84 ERA 32.1 IP 14H 6R 3ER 6BB 40K Hoffman - 6.1 IP 7H 6R 5ER 2BB 5K Season - 4.06 ERA 31 IP 23H 17R 14ER 15BB 37K Newcomb - 7 IP 2H 0R 0ER 3BB 8K Season - 0.00 ERA 24.2 IP 10H 1R 0ER 12BB 31K (four starts) Beede looks like he has found an answer for the questions around his control. Watched Rodon Friday night and wasn't all that impressed though maybe it was an off night, through too many pitches out of the zone and that will not work in pro ball. Throws too many pitches as it is. I am thrilled that Beede has emerged to strengthen the top of the draft. Unless Hoffman completely tanks the rest of the year away, Rodon, Hoffman, and Beede make a strong top three overall players who happen to project to be exactly what the Sox are reportedly looking for. I would be very happy with any of those three.

Take this with a grain of salt of course, but some tidbits from Keith Law's chat today. He doesn't believe Rodon is the "clear" 1-1 anymore and has been "passed by a few guys." He declined to mention specifics, citing his rankings being released next week, but said that you could make an argument for Kolek, Gatewood, Jackson, Hoffman, Beede. His rationale is that his "fastball has been average, command average or a tick below, and he's not missing bats." Said that scouts/execs are "backing away from him." As far as other top pitching prospects, he believes Hoffman is the best of the Beede, Hoffman, Kolek trio. Calls Hoffman a "plus plus athlete with easy velocity and the potential for a plus curveball." Says that Beede is the "safest" of the three and that Kolek a "monster." Very down on Trea Turner. Said he has "no power, bad swing, not physical." No sure what not physical means, this isn't football or basketball. Said that Gatewood has really improved his hit tool, using the whole field and showing a "more mature overall approach." Thinks he'll go top 5-6.

QUOTE (Eminor3rd @ Mar 12, 2014 -> 02:27 PM) What are the knocks on Gatewood? Every time I see a write-up, he sounds like a monster, yet some people are showing him falling to like 20. He is 6'5'' 190 so very unlikely he will stay at SS. In his swing he takes a long stride with a exaggerated toe tap that will likely lead to a lot of K's. He has tremendous power and when he makes contact he hits the ball hard. Upside could be a 3B with 30-40 homers but downside is a strikeout king at AA. If we were picking in the teens or early 20's I'd be excited to take a chance on him, but at #3 I would pass.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Mar 12, 2014 -> 01:08 PM) It is still super-early, but I am feeling Beede for the Sox right now. Just a gut reaction. I agree. Early on I was worried that Rodon and Hoffman would be a class on their own, but Beede has definitely joined them. FYI, Beede is facing off against Aaron Nola Friday night in what could be a showdown between two top 10 picks.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Mar 11, 2014 -> 02:42 PM) They're not going to challenge him until he can continously prove he's going to let pitches that are unhittable go past him. When he gets into those short grooves you can see him doing exactly that, he'll take a couple extra walks and have the count in his favor and the next thing you know he kills the ball, but then 2 weeks later he'll be back swinging at pitches over his head. Pitchers won't be scared of walking him until he shows he's not going to swing. Do you believe that Avisail Garcia is going to go through the same struggles? Viciedo actually has a higher walk rate than Garcia does thus far.

QUOTE (Joshua Strong @ Mar 11, 2014 -> 06:22 AM) I am not worried about Kolek's frame, his body is just more mature. He has a similar build to Noah Syndergaard who is listed at 6'6 240, and if you're worried about his athleticism remember that he is being recruited by SEC teams to play DE. Once he starts training with ML physical trainers his body will be in better shape. I think that guys like Hoffman and Beede have reached their ceilings and are who they are going to be, I don't find their numbers to be too spectacular or worth of being a top 5 pick in the draft. Tyler Kolek on the other hand is a 18 year old power-pitcher, who has a fastball that can hit 100mph and hits the high 90s with regularity. He also has a developing slider and curveball that scream plus, along with a change up that sits in the low 80s. He is compared to guys like Syndergaard, Strausburg and Jonathan Gray. The sky is truly the limit for Kolek and his potential. He has to be the pick. I am going to say first that even though I would be surprised if the Sox picked Kolek over a college pitcher, I still would be very excited about his potential. With his size, athleticism, and talent he could be an ace one day no doubt. I just would disagree with your assessment that his breaking stuff "screams plus." His slider is his most advanced breaking ball, followed by a curve, and I read some reports that he barely throws/controls a change up. With his size, it's no surprise he has a big fastball, but he is going to have to work very hard on his secondary stuff to realize his lofty potential. He is going to have a difficult time transitioning from blowing away small town high school hitters to professionals. With that being said, if the Sox do take him, they better believe they can refine those secondary pitches. I just don't see the Sox passing on more polished collegiate pitchers that high in the draft. I don't think Beede or Hoffman has "reached their ceilings." Beede and Hoffman have three plus or flashing plus plus offerings that profile as a #1 or #2 starter. I think if the Sox are looking for someone to pair with Sale at the top of the rotation during his time they go for Hoffman or Beede.

QUOTE (Stan Bahnsen @ Mar 10, 2014 -> 01:29 PM) This is what I need to be convinced of regarding Beede. Does he have Ace stuff? From what I've seen and read the only real knock on him has been his command due to an inconsistent release point. He has a plus fastball, an even better change up, and his curve has "flashed" plus when he is commanding it. I would not be comfortable taking him if his walk rates were similar to last year but at least so far he seems to be in control. http://bigleaguefutures.net/1/2013/11/06/s...tyler-beede-sp/

Obviously a prelude to the Santana signing.

QUOTE (raBBit @ Mar 10, 2014 -> 10:48 AM) Stoltz absolutely loves Ravelo and he claims he can stick at 3B because of his athleticism. Other scouts have said the contrary. Stoltz only follows the prospects that are in his proximity and he falls in love with a few of them and Ravelo is one of those. Either way, his stats don't lie and he was fun to follow last year. I just hate the fact that he plays 1B. I would be interested to know the rationale for the move to 1B. If they truly believe he can't play anywhere but 1B, it would be disappointing, but not as bad as Stoltz seems to think. Black and Wilkins are basically non-prospects, Barnum is a huge question mark and Abreu could easily move to DH by the time Ravelo is ready.

If Hoffman isn't there, I think the Sox call on Beede. He's more polished than Kolek, has similar upside, and has dominated thus far this spring. His command was a knock on him previously, in 2013 he had 63 walks, 14 wild pitches and 10 hit batters in 101 IP. But thus far this spring he 5 walks to 33 strikeouts over 25 IP and a nice .129 batting average against. If he keeps that up, he might pass Hoffman as the 2nd best arm available.

QUOTE (flavum @ Mar 6, 2014 -> 03:42 PM) Abreu homer Hell yes! First of many

QUOTE (Feeky Magee @ Mar 6, 2014 -> 03:35 PM) Adam Eaton 3-for-3 Dude came in ready for baseball. Gotta love it

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Mar 6, 2014 -> 03:16 PM) Carlos Sanchez RBI single scores Dayan and ties up the game. Carlos Sanchez, the prospect who went from overrated to underrated in one year.

Boggs getting lit up. People might want to slow their roll on anointing him the closer.

QUOTE (IowaSoxFan @ Mar 6, 2014 -> 11:57 AM) Watching this video - His frame reminds me of a young version of former White Sox closer Bobby Jenks. His delivery is kind of jerky? Too many potential red flags for my taste at #3 overall. Throwing gas will get you noticed in HS, but in the pros he's gotta have some great secondary stuff too.

QUOTE (PolishPrince34 @ Mar 6, 2014 -> 10:11 AM) Trea Turner should be out of the running at #3. Positives are speed and defense, but way too many flaws as a hitter. Has a very awkward swing that will not generate any power. Not a fan of Turner. I think it's pitcher all the way. I think they jump for joy if Hoffman is there, if not Kolek or Beede. Just my (mostly) uninformed opinion.

QUOTE (raBBit @ Mar 3, 2014 -> 11:47 AM) I am shocked to see this list is from Sickels. I thought it was pretty bad. You have guys like Hawkins, Sanchez and Beck who just got killed because of their seasons last year. I wonder how many other prospect lists have the guy with the most potential in the system at #11. Then you have Surkamp way higher than he should be. Perhaps Sickels love his minor league numbers? Don't like the list much at all. He penalizes Hawkins and Sanchez for being placed extremely aggressive and doesn't pay much attention to their tools. I would argue that Sanchez has a much better chance of making an impact in Chicago than Micah Johnson, for example. Micah Johnson at age 23 looked very over matched at A+ and AA. Carlos Sanchez dominated those leagues at age 20, but struggled (understandably) at 21 in AAA. And that's not even factoring in huge defensive advantage Sanchez has over Johnson. Sanchez can play two or three positions (2B, SS, 3B) passably while Johnson has yet to find a position.