DaTank

Can I please get my name changed to DaTank?

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Jun 10, 2012 -> 10:34 AM) Holmberg's like the #8 prospect for the DBacks. Who's to say Quintana isn't just as good already, or Santiago? Once Holmberg makes AA he's potentially a jump away from being in the Majors. Holmberg's MiLB peripherals s*** on Quintana's or Santiago's. And Holmberg is only 20. It's safe to say he has a fairly high ceiling compared to those other two. The Huddy/Holmberg and Gio trades make me cringe every time I think about them.

Leighton's starting the year as the starting 1B for Great Falls. Doesn't strike out as much as your average 1B (34 times in 44 games last year) but also doesn't walk much either (6 times). Still, I find him to be a very intriguing prospect for a prep player taken in the 40th round.

QUOTE (JohnCangelosi @ Jun 1, 2010 -> 11:20 PM) I'd like to keep TCQ, Beckham, Rios, Danks, and Floyd to build around. When are people finally going to stop all this nonsense talk with Quentin? Outside of 2008, he's shown no ability to be a remotely above-average MLer. In 5 different ML seasons, aside from '08, the highest he's batted and got on base was .253 and .342, in his rookie season for the D-Backs in '06.

QUOTE (Lillian @ May 30, 2010 -> 10:42 AM) If the Angels have a good left handed hitting prospect with whom they would be willing to part, please get him. I don't care what position he plays. 21 year old 2B Alexi Amarista. His line on the year in High-A: .350/.389/.503.

So it's been a while since I've actively posted here at Soxtalk, but I've been thinking/reading a lot into the 2010 Draft lately and thought many of you would enjoy a piece on the possibilities for us at 13th overall year. I'm no draft expert, but I thought I'd give this a shot. It's been said that the Sox will likely focus on pitching in 2010, specifically of the collegiate ranks. I expect southpaws Drew Pomeranz and Chris Sale along with righty Jameson Taillon to be off the boards by 13 so I won't include them. Let's look at some names the Sox might be focusing on with their top pick. Collegiate Arms: RHP/OF - Brett Eibner, Arkansas. Likely the top two-way player in the draft. Fastball has touched 97. (BA's 14th ranked pitcher) RHP - Matt Harvey, North Carolina. Plus fastball and slider. Command can be a problem at times. (BA's 11th ranked pitcher) RHP - Deck McGuire, Georgia Tech. One of the more consistent college arms. (BA's 4th ranked pitcher) RHP - Anthony Ranaudo, LSU. Projected to be a top 5 pick coming into this year, recent elbow troubles have pushed him down most boards. 2010 stats are just plain ugly. (BA's 15th ranked pitcher) RHP - Alex Wimmers, Ohio State. Very polished righty. (BA's 12th ranked pitcher) RHP - Asher Wojciechowski, The Citadel. Great command of his hard fastball. (BA's 13th ranked pitcher) RHP - Brandon Workman, Texas. Seems to be more of a contact pitcher with 87 K's in 88 innings. (BA's 10th ranked pitcher) Prep Arms: RHP - Stetson Allie, St. Edwards HS, Lakewood, OH. Has the best stuff in draft next to Jameson Taillon. (BA's 5th ranked pitcher) RHP - A.J. Cole, Oviedo HS, Oviedo, FL. Coming into this year he was projected to be right up at the top of the draft with prep righty Jameson Taillon but has very slightly fallen off. (BA's 8th ranked pitcher) RHP - Dylan Covey, Maranatha HS, Pasadena, CA. Good mechanics. Above average stuff and command. (BA's 9th ranked pitcher) RHP/3B - Kaleb Cowart, Cook HS, Adel, GA. Two-way prep player likely to be drafted as a pitcher. (BA's 6th ranked pitcher) RHP - Karsten Whitson, Chipley HS, Chipley, FL. Holds the best command among prep pitchers in the draft. (BA's 7th ranked pitcher) First thing you'll notice is that I haven't included any lefties. Outside of Pomeranz and Sale there's a bit of a drop off in southpaws. James Paxton and Sammy Solis are possibilities, but both are regarded as Supplemental 1st/2nd Round talents at this point. Next, I'll look at the position players that could still be around when we pick at 13. I'm writing this with the assumption that Bryce Harper, Zack Cox, and Manny Machado will be off the boards by the time our pick comes around. Collegiate Position Players: OF - Gary Brown, Cal State Fullerton. Broke his hand this year. Likely won't be picked until a little later, but, tools galore. (BA's 9th ranked position player) OF - Bryce Brentz, Middle Tennessee State. Was projected higher after an insane performance of a .465 batting average with 28 HR in '09. Supposedly one of the better power bats in the draft, but has poor size for a "power hitter". One of my least favorites to go to us at 13. (BA's 15th ranked position player) OF - Michael Choice, Texas-Arlington. Nice power and patience with a chance to stick in CF. (BA's 6th ranked position player) SS - Christian Colon, Cal State Fullerton. "Safe" college bat. (BA's 4th ranked position player) C - Yasmani Grandal, Miami. Likely to be the second catcher picked behind Bryce Harper. Personal favorite. (BA's 8th ranked position player) 2B - Kolbrin Vitek, Ball State. "Gifted hitter". Move to OF likely at the pro level. (BA's 13th ranked position player) Prep Position Players: 3B - Nick Castellanos, Archbishop McCarthy HS, Southwest Ranches, FL. Very intriguing player to watch. Personally, I'd love this pick if he's still around. He's a leader and an athlete. Former SS converted to 3B. (BA's 10th ranked position player) C - Justin O'Conner, Cowan HS, Muncie, IN. Raw catcher in his first year at the position after recently being converted from SS. Has a plus-plus arm. (BA's 12th ranked position player) OF - Josh Sale, Bishop Blanchet HS, Seattle, WA. "Physical beast" with good power and a solid overall bat. (BA's 5th ranked position player) OF - Austin Wilson, Harvard-Westlake HS, Los Angeles, CA. Some of the best tools in the draft. Strong Stanford commitment. Likely hard to sign. Another personal favorite. (BA's 14th ranked position player) If the Sox go with a position player, I'd love to see them snatch up Yasmani Grandal, Austin Wilson, or Nick Castellanos, pending who's available. If they go pitching with their first pick, I'd hope to see a pick of Deck McGuire, Alex Wimmers, Stetson Allie, Karten Whitson, or Dylan Covey. Offer your thoughts in the comments. Link to where I got a decent amount of my information. It's Baseball America's current rankings of the top 200.

JFPFS.

http://twitter.com/Kevin_Goldstein/status/12895361422

I wish we would have signed Justin Jones or even Brian Goodwin over Holmberg. Both have the talent to be future first rounders.

QUOTE (danman31 @ Apr 20, 2010 -> 10:07 PM) I think he earned the promotion in the first place. Baseball Beginnings sure likes him. They aren't alone. Kid has talent. I'm trying to stay reserved, but man I'm really happy to see this from him. The Sox really need to start making more picks similar to the Trayce Thompson one last year (and going over bonus on similarly talented young players later in the draft). For a guy with his talent and ceiling, he signed for $625,000 out of high school.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Dec 28, 2009 -> 06:54 PM) Quentin does not have a history of injuries with the DBacks. He had a surgery to repair a partially torn labrum in his left shoulder (which does nothing to effect his throwing and only saps from his power when it's injured because he won't be able to follow through without being in pain) and that is it in regards to his injuries within the Diamondbacks system. He played 125 games in 2004, 136 games in 2005, 142 games in 2006, and 114 games in 2007 (the year of his surgery). That's 3 full seasons plus most of the 2007 season anyways. Since coming to Chicago, he's broken his wrist because he punched a bat or a locker or a wall or something (supposedly a bat, but who really knows?), and in 2009 he was injured because of plantar fasciitis. None of the injuries are related whatsoever. COULD contribute does not mean WILL contribute. And CONTRIBUTE just means he plays in the majors and puts up numbers. He could contribute in the form of a .725 OPS. That doesn't mean he's GOOD. He also had Tommy John on his right elbow after he was drafted. Sure, all of his injuries are unrelated, but that doesn't mean his body's not a magnet for injuries. And I didn't say he'd contribute positively, so you're right on your points there. My post was meant to say that he'll see playing time in the Majors in 2010, that's it. Though he could contribute in a good way next year.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Dec 28, 2009 -> 06:49 PM) I'm confused here. You like Carter's A ball and AA ball power numbers better than you like Quentin who probably would have been MVP in 2008 with 40+ homers if he didn't suffer a fluke injury. Plus, filling needs, wouldn't a guy who has gotten it done in the major leagues fill them a lot better than a question mark? I could understand if you're basing a lot of this if it is your belief that Quentin won't be able to stay healthy, I think that is a legit concern. He hasn't been able to do it yet, but if he can put that behind him, I don't see how this trade will ever look like anything but a good one from a White Sox perspective. I don't necessarily like Carter better as a player, I'm just concerned a ton with Quentin's injuries, as you've mentioned. And I agree, if Carlos can stay healthy and produce, that deal is an obvious win for the White Sox.

I know he'll be a first basemen. What I'm trying to articulate is that a 1B-OF type sounds more like someone who can actually stick somewhere defensively compared to someone described as a 1B-DH type. I wasn't trying to convey the point that I think he'll end up in the OF. 1B or DH is his future.

QUOTE (League @ Dec 28, 2009 -> 06:01 PM) The very article that you quoted said that he had defensive deficiencies. The very article I quoted also listed him as a 1B-OF type, not a 1B-DH type. Defensive questions doesn't mean he'll only be a DH for the most part of his career.

QUOTE (League @ Dec 28, 2009 -> 05:39 PM) I just don't understand at all why you would want to replace a guy who has proven his minor league numbers were a true indication of his major league talent and replicated them at the ML level, while playing acceptable defense in RF for a guy who has yet to hit in the majors or prove that he can play any defensive position adequately. Because I fear injuries will eat up his career. I have yet to see anything that tells me Carter can't play 1st or a corner OF spot adequately yet.