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UDFA dreamin'


southsider2k5

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We need to look for the Gonsolin types if there are any.  I'm not sure how good we will be at finding somebody like that.

Many of these players might just go to JuCo.  I dunno.  It's hard to think about fringey draft prospects passing on 20k if offered but it's also hard to imagine someone who has the skills to get 60k+ not betting on himself at least for 1 year in JuCo.

I think the Sox cupboard will mostly be bare.

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There were 160 players drafted this year. Previous years 1200+. That leaves a lot of guys out there. I suppose one would have to look at the good players in the majors today and see how many were drafted after the 5th round to realize there are some All Stars who were not drafted. Who finds them? What do the Sox do ? If they plan on going heavy into IFA do they make a token effort to sign the UDFA's out there fora a pittance ? If you can sign 50 guys that's only $1M isn't it ? Sox need to go full bore after the best UDFA's unless since they are actually free agents and 2 or more clubs want the same player can they actually negotiate for higher than the 20K ? Seems like they should be able to otherwise it's not free agency . There isn't a cap on what you can spend on UDFA 's ? Isn't it that you can sign an unlimited number of guys at 20K ?

 

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The problem is the $20k cap is such a small amount an interesting HS player isn’t going to skip college, an interesting junior would probably go back to school as well. It will just mostly be college seniors IMO. 
Obviously there are players that weren’t drafted that eventually will be good MLBers. But getting them signed for $20k is going to be pretty tough. Just remember Ozney Guillen turning down $75k, and that was a decade ago. Chances are pretty remote the Sox sign anyone worth being excited about.

Edited by Dick Allen
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There will be some juniors as well. These guys can go back to school as juniors again but they'll be a year older and entering next year's draft which already has 20 rounds worth of players. There will be some players who sign that will be a surprise. It'll be mostly seniors but I'm curious to see what happens. Clubs can offer to pay for the rest of college and supply signees with unlimited amounts of gear. That's about it other than the 20K though. 

I would think that relievers would be the priority. The White Sox really don't have a ton of space for position players in their system, especially without Great Falls. 

Mason Erla of Michigan State is interesting but I'm not sure what his plans are. Some other guys from MLB Pipeline's top 200 that weren't drafted are: Gavin Williams (ECU), Andrew Abbott (Virginia), Justin Fall (ASU), Carson Seymour (Kansas State), Tyson Guerrero (Lower Columbia CC). 

Here are the top seniors available: https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/top-25-seniors-to-watch-in-2020-mlb-draft-undrafted-free-agent-market/

Top players available from BA: https://www.baseballamerica.com/rankings/2020-mlb-draft-best-available-players/

Some expected names from Jonathan Mayo: https://www.mlb.com/news/2020-mlb-non-drafted-free-agents

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2 hours ago, Dick Allen said:

The problem is the $20k cap is such a small amount an interesting HS player isn’t going to skip college, an interesting junior would probably go back to school as well. It will just mostly be college seniors IMO. 
Obviously there are players that weren’t drafted that eventually will be good MLBers. But getting them signed for $20k is going to be pretty tough. Just remember Ozney Guillen turning down $75k, and that was a decade ago. Chances are pretty remote the Sox sign anyone worth being excited about.

I agree. Going to school would be the best option for the majority of the ones with any significant talent. It will be intersting to see if any of the talented seniors go back and take advantage of the extra year of eligibility to try to get into next year's draft. 

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41 minutes ago, Y2Jimmy0 said:

There will be some juniors as well. These guys can go back to school as juniors again but they'll be a year older and entering next year's draft which already has 20 rounds worth of players. There will be some players who sign that will be a surprise. It'll be mostly seniors but I'm curious to see what happens. Clubs can offer to pay for the rest of college and supply signees with unlimited amounts of gear. That's about it other than the 20K though. 

I would think that relievers would be the priority. The White Sox really don't have a ton of space for position players in their system, especially without Great Falls. 

Mason Erla of Michigan State is interesting but I'm not sure what his plans are. Some other guys from MLB Pipeline's top 200 that weren't drafted are: Gavin Williams (ECU), Andrew Abbott (Virginia), Justin Fall (ASU), Carson Seymour (Kansas State), Tyson Guerrero (Lower Columbia CC). 

Here are the top seniors available: https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/top-25-seniors-to-watch-in-2020-mlb-draft-undrafted-free-agent-market/

Top players available from BA: https://www.baseballamerica.com/rankings/2020-mlb-draft-best-available-players/

Some expected names from Jonathan Mayo: https://www.mlb.com/news/2020-mlb-non-drafted-free-agents

There is also going to be a big glut of players to compete with in the coming years with less jobs with the reductions of minor league teams coming.  It might be worth skipping the bonus to get entrenched this year.

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I'd focus on college seniors, small college/DII juniors, Juco prospects, and Puerto Rican prospects.

Most of the major unsigned juniors aren't going to sign for $20k, especially with the NCAA giving them eligibility back.

Guy I like is Jonathan Hughes from Georgia Tech (5th yr Sr). Should be a quick moving reliever

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4 hours ago, CeaseAndExist said:

I'd focus on college seniors, small college/DII juniors, Juco prospects, and Puerto Rican prospects.

Most of the major unsigned juniors aren't going to sign for $20k, especially with the NCAA giving them eligibility back.

Guy I like is Jonathan Hughes from Georgia Tech (5th yr Sr). Should be a quick moving reliever

I hope Jr's don't take it. JC's who are committed to good schools shouldn't take it either.  Here are some Illinois Sr's I think will be targeted.

Kenny Serwa RHP 

Jake Dunham C

Colton Johnson LHP 

Theron Denlinger RHP

Garrett Acton RHP

 

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14 hours ago, Harold's Leg Lift said:

I hope Jr's don't take it. JC's who are committed to good schools shouldn't take it either.  Here are some Illinois Sr's I think will be targeted.

Kenny Serwa RHP 

Jake Dunham C

Colton Johnson LHP 

Theron Denlinger RHP

Garrett Acton RHP

 

I feel for them though. The money angle is pretty straightforward in that it is likely they will sign for more than 20k next year.

But the time is not straightforward, and the competition.

If your dream is to play affiliate ball, you are staring at a situation where you could take that spot now, or risk that you had a good year next year competing against double the players in an environment where there will likely be even fewer milb teams.

Just a really sad situation for kids on the cusp of something really special and they were the ones everyone was willing to sacrifice.

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