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Is hagen smith a wasted pick?

bobbydanks

By bobbydanks
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Eminor3rd Grand Master

Eminor3rd

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It was a bad pick at the time, even if Smith would have turned out as good as advertised, because they chose a college pitcher who already had Tommy John instead of any of the plethora of high upside hitting prospects, the most notable of course being Konnor Griffin, but there were other options too.

To be at the absolute nadir of a rebuild and make the choice that had the highest bust potential and the shortest time window of return potential was, I think, the type of thing that would have gotten certain people fired at other organizations. No one in the entire league would have argued that Smith was clearly the BPA at that slot, there were many players in the same talent tier.

It was a dumb pick the second they made it, and I still believe he’s gonna be a productive major leaguer. 

Edited by Eminor3rd
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caulfield12 Grand Master

caulfield12

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2 hours ago, Eminor3rd said:

It was a bad pick at the time, even if Smith would have turned out as good as advertised, because they chose a college pitcher who already had Tommy John instead of any of the plethora of high upside hitting prospects, the most notable of course being Konnor Griffin, but there were other options too.

To be at the absolute nadir of a rebuild and make the choice that had the highest bust potential and the shortest time window of return potential was, I think, the type of thing that would have gotten certain people fired at other organizations. No one in the entire league would have argued that Smith was clearly the BPA at that slot, there were many players in the same talent tier.

It was a dumb pick the second they made it, and I still believe he’s gonna be a productive major leaguer. 

At that time, there was the belief they pretty much only had success with LHP…Gio/Cease were the outliers.

Sale, Quintana, Rodon, Crochet, Schultz, etc.

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Capn12 Grand Master

Capn12

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I'd worry more about Jacob Gonzalez being a wasted pick, over Hagen. At least Hagen has a big arm, even post surgery, that can play in the bigs. JG's skill set has so little upside for the big leagues.

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WhiteSox2023 Grand Master

WhiteSox2023

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1 hour ago, Capn12 said:

I'd worry more about Jacob Gonzalez being a wasted pick, over Hagen. At least Hagen has a big arm, even post surgery, that can play in the bigs. JG's skill set has so little upside for the big leagues.

I don’t think anyone worries about that one so much because it’s pretty much been universally accepted.  🫣

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Johno Community Regular

Johno

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Before we put a fork in Hagen Smith, let’s see what he does this year.   if he needs to be in the minors all year then maybe we can start being concerned.   Just remember, his last year at Arkansas, he was dominating!!  I have a positive feeling he’s going to be a big contributor this year!!

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southsider2k5 Grand Master

southsider2k5

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He might not have been the BEST pick, but it's way too soon to label him as a WASTED pick.  Right now things are still way more gray than that.  If we get a mid rotation starter, he was a good pick.  If we get a front line starter, he was a great pick.  If he washes out, he was a wasted pick.  But as of today, we don't know what he will be.

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vilehoopster Mentor

vilehoopster

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I don't understand what is behind this post. It has like no credibility at all. 

Did you pay attention to what Smith did for Birmingham in the playoffs last year. This is copied and pasted off google AI. 

 

In the 2025 Double-A Southern League playoffs, Chicago White Sox pitching prospect Hagen Smith was dominant for the Birmingham Barons.
  • Key Playoff Performance: On September 18, 2025, Smith threw 5 hitless innings against the Chattanooga Lookouts, racking up 10 strikeouts and allowing two walks, leading to a 4-0 victory.
  • Total Playoff Stats: Across two Southern League playoff starts, Smith threw 9 innings, striking out 16 batters while allowing only 2 hits.

 

Did you pay attention to how he pitched in the AFL last fall. According to MLB.com, (I remember seeing it last fall and it was easy to find) again copied and pasted off google. 

 

 

Astros right-hander James Hicks was named the 2025 Arizona Fall League (AFL) Pitcher of the Year after throwing 14 scoreless innings for the Scottsdale Scorpions. Other top pitchers in the 2025 AFL included top prospect Hagen Smith (Glendale) and dominant reliever Cade Denton (Salt River), both named to the 2025 All-AFL Team.
Key pitchers in the 2025 AFL included:
  • James Hicks (Scottsdale/HOU): 2025 AFL Pitcher of the Year, 14 scoreless innings, dominated with a versatile arsenal.
  • Hagen Smith (Glendale/CWS): Top prospect selected for the All-AFL team.
  • Cade Denton (Salt River/COL): All-AFL Team reliever.
  • Emiliano Teodo (Surprise/TEX): Tied for the AFL lead in saves (2) with a 2.25 ERA.
  • Karson Milbrandt (MIA): Featured one of the hardest fastballs in the league at 99 mph.

 

 

I listen to so many White Sox podcasts that I don't remember which one, but one of the guys predicted that Hagen would leave spring training as the Sox's 5th starter.

So, wherever you're getting your information or opinion from, I don't know what to say. 

 

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WestEddy Grand Master

WestEddy

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9 minutes ago, joejoesox said:

Yes, without question, we all thought they were taking KG  

Let's stop giving Getz all the praise but forgetting about the multiple times he royally fucked up 

Can you direct me to these strings where Getz is praised to a nauseating degree? 

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caulfield12 Grand Master

caulfield12

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Konnor Griffin is the reason the Pirates are likely one of the three most valuable franchises in MLB for future value/under 26 talent...

The White Sox would now be Top 3-5 if not #1 with Griffin instead of #18.

(Roch Cholowsky himself likely puts them in that 4-5 range if not Top 3 alone.)

Not wasted...but lost opportunity cost.

 

They'd also have the luxury of three SS's at other positions (3B and 2B) and actually four, with Caleb Bonemer in LF/RF.

(Pirates ranked 3rd, just released now).

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caulfield12 Grand Master

caulfield12

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1 hour ago, vilehoopster said:

I don't understand what is behind this post. It has like no credibility at all. 

Did you pay attention to what Smith did for Birmingham in the playoffs last year. This is copied and pasted off google AI. 

 

In the 2025 Double-A Southern League playoffs, Chicago White Sox pitching prospect Hagen Smith was dominant for the Birmingham Barons.
  • Key Playoff Performance: On September 18, 2025, Smith threw 5 hitless innings against the Chattanooga Lookouts, racking up 10 strikeouts and allowing two walks, leading to a 4-0 victory.
  • Total Playoff Stats: Across two Southern League playoff starts, Smith threw 9 innings, striking out 16 batters while allowing only 2 hits.

 

Did you pay attention to how he pitched in the AFL last fall. According to MLB.com, (I remember seeing it last fall and it was easy to find) again copied and pasted off google. 

 

 

Astros right-hander James Hicks was named the 2025 Arizona Fall League (AFL) Pitcher of the Year after throwing 14 scoreless innings for the Scottsdale Scorpions. Other top pitchers in the 2025 AFL included top prospect Hagen Smith (Glendale) and dominant reliever Cade Denton (Salt River), both named to the 2025 All-AFL Team.
Key pitchers in the 2025 AFL included:
  • James Hicks (Scottsdale/HOU): 2025 AFL Pitcher of the Year, 14 scoreless innings, dominated with a versatile arsenal.
  • Hagen Smith (Glendale/CWS): Top prospect selected for the All-AFL team.
  • Cade Denton (Salt River/COL): All-AFL Team reliever.
  • Emiliano Teodo (Surprise/TEX): Tied for the AFL lead in saves (2) with a 2.25 ERA.
  • Karson Milbrandt (MIA): Featured one of the hardest fastballs in the league at 99 mph.

 

 

I listen to so many White Sox podcasts that I don't remember which one, but one of the guys predicted that Hagen would leave spring training as the Sox's 5th starter.

So, wherever you're getting your information or opinion from, I don't know what to say. 

 

Haven't they already announced that Schultz is headed for Charlotte and Hagen to Birmingham to start the season?

They're also not cutting Fedde if he pitches well in ST.

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Chicago White Sox Grand Master

Chicago White Sox

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There is no doubting the Sox should have taken a positional player in hindsight and I’d argue they should have probably done so at the time of the draft.  The Sox taking Konner Griffin wasn’t a slam dunk decision at the time though.  No doubt he had his fans and some posters here were championing for him, but Smith over him specifically wasn’t necessarily a crazy proposition draft night.  Regardless, I think it’s fair to say Smith can turn out to be a really good pitcher while also acknowledging Getz sort of bungled the pick by over-ruling his Scouting Director.

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