NorthSideSox72 Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 Our Brian Bilek (raBBit) snagged an interview with Marco Paddy, Director of International Scouting. This is, per Marco, the first real interview he's done with the media before (he's given a quote here and there). So this was a really neat get. The interview is here, where he talks about the talent pipeline from Latin America among other topics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iamshack Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 Awesome job, Brian! Great to see you continue to reel in these great interviews. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleHurt05 Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 Good stuff, way to go Brian. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoxAce Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 Brian, you stud. Beautifully done. FS has really come a long way. Sometimes I have to step back and re-see it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southsider2k5 Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 This is worth sharing: Brian: When I spoke to Rick in January and I asked him if there there were any inklings or thoughts that you guys could potentially go past your pool into that penalty threshold but instead, he really harked on building up the system and bringing in a greater number of talents. Would you say that quantity was a point of emphasis for you these past few years? Marco: I don’t want to say quantity only; I would say quantity of quality players. There are some players that are more advanced than others and you can put all your eggs in that basket but at the end of the day, scouting is no perfect science. Whether it’s in the draft or internationally, you really don’t want to put all your efforts into one player unless you have the ability to blow a budget and spend 25 million dollars. We don’t think that’s the best way to go. There are very few players in that upper tier but there are quite a few players in that second tier who can be developed into what you’re looking for. I mean, when you’re talking about 15 and 16 year old kids, it’s so hard to determine exactly how their career is going to evolve. I think it makes perfect sense for us to operate the way we do. You can spend a million dollars on a horse but if he doesn’t win that race you only have the one horse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChiSoxFanMike Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 Really good interview. Kudos to Brian for getting it done. He's one of the best in the business IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southsider2k5 Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 QUOTE (raBBit @ Sep 27, 2016 -> 10:18 AM) Thank you for all the kind words everyone. To be totally honest, this is an interview I've wanted to get for a long time and I am especially proud we got. I just never really thought I had the understanding of the international process to do it proper but after the Sox continuance of disappointing seasons I found myself looking for reasons to stay interested. Paddy is basically always in LatAm. I talked to him on Saturday and he was home in Florida (albeit at the airport heading south) for the first time in a long while. He didn't get a day off for a while after July 2nd. He told me he's not really going to get any real time off until Christmas. Last week I had just emailed him out of the blue last week with a request and he didn't get back to me via email. I had my cell number on my email signature and he called me out of the blue Saturday when I was at the car wash. He told me he was confused someone wanted to talk to him because he's never really done a full interview. Then he called Rick Hahn and Hahn told him not to even sweat it and vouched for both our site and me personally. It was great to hear. Sox get a lot of flack for being "tight lipped" or "too loyal" in their dealings but they have absolutely enabled us to add another dimension to the site. It starts with Matt (NorthSideSox) putting the leg work in before we had ever done any of this exclusive stuff, but ever since Matt started pushing us, the content just keeps coming. We've been able to interview the GM, AGM, Scouting Director, Director of International Scouting, scouts, coaches, every top prospect (other than Jose Abreu) since Nestor Molina and dozens more prospects. Every year we have more growth and more opportunities. I thought that was an important part of the interview. I didn't really push him on the Sox strategy but he was definitely making a point to sell the hell out of it and looking further into it, it does seem the longer we get into this CBA the more beneficial the Sox strategy is becoming. Next year should be an even better year. If they wanted to go over next year (don't hold you breath) they could really bring in a haul with more than half the teams unable to sign guys for over 300K. Like it or hate it, the Sox strategy down there is seeing some serious volume starting to push into the lower levels of the minors state side. Arizona Rookie ball team was a large chunk from the LatAm signings. They are starting to push the better players into A ball, and they are showing various levels of success while doing it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Y2Jimmy0 Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 Really good stuff by Brian. It's really easy to be upset about them not blowing past the pool but what Paddy said does make sense. They can sign guys that would be 500-600K players for 300-350K. Many of these guys have made it stateside from the past few signing periods: Micker Adolfo, Nelson Acosta, Ricky Mota, Felix Mercedes, Jhoandro Alfaro, Amado Nunez, and Franklin Reyes. Tatis is highly regarded and was obviously traded to San Diego. The most recent class landed three OF's ranked in the 30's in Josue Guerrero, Luis Mieses, and Anderson Comas. They signed 9 players total. We really have no proof that some of these guys are worse prospects than guys signed for $4 million bonuses. If they ever do go over, this is the year to do it. I doubt it happens though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donaldo Posted September 28, 2016 Share Posted September 28, 2016 The Sox did well on the International market in the 90s (Carlos Lee, Magglio Ordonez). Glad to see the Sox back there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PolishPrince34 Posted September 29, 2016 Share Posted September 29, 2016 Great job! Best interview with a key member in their organization. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fathom Posted September 29, 2016 Share Posted September 29, 2016 Maybe I read it wrong, but are they going after a big money pitcher next July? Seemed that way Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheTruth05 Posted September 29, 2016 Share Posted September 29, 2016 QUOTE (raBBit @ Sep 27, 2016 -> 10:18 AM) Thank you for all the kind words everyone. To be totally honest, this is an interview I've wanted to get for a long time and I am especially proud we got. I just never really thought I had the understanding of the international process to do it proper but after the Sox continuance of disappointing seasons I found myself looking for reasons to stay interested. Paddy is basically always in LatAm. I talked to him on Saturday and he was home in Florida (albeit at the airport heading south) for the first time in a long while. He didn't get a day off for a while after July 2nd. He told me he's not really going to get any real time off until Christmas. Last week I had just emailed him out of the blue last week with a request and he didn't get back to me via email. I had my cell number on my email signature and he called me out of the blue Saturday when I was at the car wash. He told me he was confused someone wanted to talk to him because he's never really done a full interview. Then he called Rick Hahn and Hahn told him not to even sweat it and vouched for both our site and me personally. It was great to hear. Sox get a lot of flack for being "tight lipped" or "too loyal" in their dealings but they have absolutely enabled us to add another dimension to the site. It starts with Matt (NorthSideSox) putting the leg work in before we had ever done any of this exclusive stuff, but ever since Matt started pushing us, the content just keeps coming. We've been able to interview the GM, AGM, Scouting Director, Director of International Scouting, scouts, coaches, every top prospect (other than Jose Abreu) since Nestor Molina and dozens more prospects. Every year we have more growth and more opportunities. I thought that was an important part of the interview. I didn't really push him on the Sox strategy but he was definitely making a point to sell the hell out of it and looking further into it, it does seem the longer we get into this CBA the more beneficial the Sox strategy is becoming. Next year should be an even better year. If they wanted to go over next year (don't hold you breath) they could really bring in a haul with more than half the teams unable to sign guys for over 300K. Great stuff Brian, all you guys are doing a heck of a job. Keep it coming! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southsider2k5 Posted September 29, 2016 Share Posted September 29, 2016 QUOTE (fathom @ Sep 28, 2016 -> 11:48 PM) Maybe I read it wrong, but are they going after a big money pitcher next July? Seemed that way They are chasing someone for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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