KW: Looking for leadoff hitters in 2009 draft

[caulfield12]

http://www.suntimes.com/sports/baseball/wh...T-sox13.article

 

 

Not quite sure why we're looking for FUTURE leadoff hitters when the problem is NOW!!!!!!

 

We have Jordan Danks, Lillibridge, Beckham and Shelby III in the pipeline...not understanding why we're more concerned with 3-5 seasons from now at this point in spring training.

 

 

[SoxFan1]

I thought we drafted Kenny Williams Jr. for that purpose?

[caulfield12]

Guillen also said Brent Lillibridge will get a look in center field. The natural shortstop has the speed suited for the leadoff spot. What about giving Beckham a shot in center?

 

"I'm not going to say no comment, it's not my style," Guillen said. "I will keep plugging him out there and we will try and play him in different positions. I want to make this clear - I'm going to play this kid at shortstop, third base and second base, not because I want him to be the utility guy. He's too good.

 

"I just want him to get at-bats and keep having the opportunity to open eyes. No matter where this kid plays he's got to play every day."[/i

 

www.dailyherald.com (Gregor)

 

 

But the other teams are messed up, too. Take the Nationals — please.

 

They've been shut out 18 times; are spending more money on guys on the disabled list or released than those on the active roster; failed Friday to sign their No. 1 draft pick (No. 9 overall) and lost his rights; have the lowest television ratings in the majors, by far — reportedly, a mere 9,000 households a night are watching; and their GM, Jim Bowden, is reported to be under investigation by MLB and federal authorities in the Dominican money-skimming case.

 

Other than that, a 44-78 record, and the .242 team batting average, things are going swimmingly in D.C.

 

Now on to the Padres, described thusly this week by CBS Sportsline's Scott Miller: "The '08 Padres have been sabotaged by poor personnel decisions, underperforming players, injuries, a string of disastrous drafts and, most noticeably, a change in philosophy as general manager Kevin Towers' autonomy has eroded with CEO Sandy Alderson and special assistant Paul DePodesta taking more control of baseball decisions."

 

Other than that, and the ugly divorce that owner John Moores is going through that might lead to a mass reduction in player payroll next year, and an offense that rivals Washington's for ineffectiveness, things are going swimmingly in San Diego. from Seattle Times

Edited March 13, 2009 by caulfield12

[caulfield12]

FUTURE WHITE SOX LEADOFF HITTERS

 

Kentrail Davis, OF, Univ. of Tennessee

AJ Pollock, 2B/OF, Notre Dame

Brett Jackson, OF, Univ. of California (Berkeley)

Jared Mitchel, OF, LSU

 

High Schoolers

Brian Goodwin, OF, HS, North Carolina

Jake Marisnick, OF, HS, California

Levon Washington, OF/2B, HS, Florida

Randal Grichuk, OF, HS, Texas

 

 

Most likely picks around #24 in first round

 

Kendal Volz (RHP), Mike Minor (LHP), Tanner Scheppers (RHP) most likely to be one of these three guys or Goodwin/Pollock, unless Davis or Donovan Tate (son of former UGA football star RB Lars Tate) fall way back in the draft or are seen as unsignable

 

Austin Maddox ©, Josh Phegley ©, Matt Stassi © This all depends on Tyler Flowers' defensive development.

 

Ben Tottle (RHRP), Jason Stoffle (RHRP) After Royce Ring disaster, not likely to go in this direction again of drafting a college reliever. The only other time we did that was with Josh Fogg, but that was with the idea of converting him to a starter out of Univ. of Florida.

Edited March 13, 2009 by caulfield12

[SoxAce]

Naw, we did it again with Matt Long, even though he's wasn't a first rounder (we drafted a guy who is just as [maybe more] worse) but still 73rd overall was... terrible and is still a very high pick. (he is now converted into a starter) He will probably never make it. God that was a terrible pick, hell both picks were, and I remember many on this board thought so as well, especially drafting a relief pitcher that high.

 

[caulfield12]

Well, that's essentially late 2nd round or early 3rd round, it doesn't really matter quite so much at that point. Look where we drafted Jordan Danks this past year.

 

It's when you use a first round draft pick on a reliever...it's like taking a punter or placekicker in the first round of the NFL draft, even late in the first round.

 

 

 

Brooks Raley, lhp/of, Texas A&M

One of the nation's best two-way players, Raley entered the season with more buzz off the mound, where he emerged as the Aggies' Friday starter as a freshman last year. Now a draft-eligible sophomore, Raley has picked up where he left off a year ago, going 3-0, 2.50 with 16 strikeouts and seven walks over his first 18 innings. He has run his fastball up to 91 mph and shown a very good 81-83 mph slider and a 75-77 curveball. Raley's pitching stock continues to rise, but scouts are now strongly considering him as a position player as well. Raley's speed rates as a 70 or 80 on the 20-80 scale, according to an American League area scout who clocked him up the line in 3.63 seconds on a bunt recently. Those wheels help Raley cover plenty of ground in right field, and he's stolen seven bases in seven attempts through 11 games. He's also wearing out the gaps at the plate, batting .422/.480/.600 with six doubles in 45 at-bats.

 

Mark Haddow, of, UC Santa Barbara

The Gauchos are getting some offense from their solidly-built outfielder Mark Haddow. At an athletic 6-foot-2 and 215-pounds, Haddow has some big raw tools. On UCSB's scout day this fall, he ran a 6.69-second 60-yard dash, flashed an above-average arm and put on a show in batting practice. The draft-eligible sophomore didn't see a lot of action last season, but is off to an exciting start this year, hitting .387/.441/.677 with two doubles, two triples and a home run over his first 31 at-bats. He's also 6-for-6 in stolen base attempts. If he maintains this type of production, he could vault himself into the top three rounds, ala Cal Poly's Grant Desme in 2007 (drafted 73rd overall by the A's) or Azusa Pacific's Kirk Nieuwenhuis last year (drafted 100th overall by the Mets).

Edited March 13, 2009 by caulfield12

[southsider2k5]

Guillen also said Brent Lillibridge will get a look in center field. The natural shortstop has the speed suited for the leadoff spot. What about giving Beckham a shot in center?

 

"I'm not going to say no comment, it's not my style," Guillen said. "I will keep plugging him out there and we will try and play him in different positions. I want to make this clear - I'm going to play this kid at shortstop, third base and second base, not because I want him to be the utility guy. He's too good.

 

"I just want him to get at-bats and keep having the opportunity to open eyes. No matter where this kid plays he's got to play every day."[/i

 

www.dailyherald.com (Gregor)

 

 

But the other teams are messed up, too. Take the Nationals — please.

 

They've been shut out 18 times; are spending more money on guys on the disabled list or released than those on the active roster; failed Friday to sign their No. 1 draft pick (No. 9 overall) and lost his rights; have the lowest television ratings in the majors, by far — reportedly, a mere 9,000 households a night are watching; and their GM, Jim Bowden, is reported to be under investigation by MLB and federal authorities in the Dominican money-skimming case.

 

Other than that, a 44-78 record, and the .242 team batting average, things are going swimmingly in D.C.

 

Now on to the Padres, described thusly this week by CBS Sportsline's Scott Miller: "The '08 Padres have been sabotaged by poor personnel decisions, underperforming players, injuries, a string of disastrous drafts and, most noticeably, a change in philosophy as general manager Kevin Towers' autonomy has eroded with CEO Sandy Alderson and special assistant Paul DePodesta taking more control of baseball decisions."

 

Other than that, and the ugly divorce that owner John Moores is going through that might lead to a mass reduction in player payroll next year, and an offense that rivals Washington's for ineffectiveness, things are going swimmingly in San Diego. from Seattle Times

 

Yeah for Lilli in CF. If he can play there, the leadoff spot might be a short jump away.

[santo=dorf]

I don't know what's sadder; the Sox throwing someone in CF just because he's fast, or the Sox looking to draft based on a single line up spot.

 

But the other teams are messed up, too. Take the Nationals — please.

 

They've been shut out 18 times; are spending more money on guys on the disabled list or released than those on the active roster; failed Friday to sign their No. 1 draft pick (No. 9 overall) and lost his rights; have the lowest television ratings in the majors, by far — reportedly, a mere 9,000 households a night are watching; and their GM, Jim Bowden, is reported to be under investigation by MLB and federal authorities in the Dominican money-skimming case.

 

Other than that, a 44-78 record, and the .242 team batting average, things are going swimmingly in D.C.

 

Now on to the Padres, described thusly this week by CBS Sportsline's Scott Miller: "The '08 Padres have been sabotaged by poor personnel decisions, underperforming players, injuries, a string of disastrous drafts and, most noticeably, a change in philosophy as general manager Kevin Towers' autonomy has eroded with CEO Sandy Alderson and special assistant Paul DePodesta taking more control of baseball decisions."

 

Other than that, and the ugly divorce that owner John Moores is going through that might lead to a mass reduction in player payroll next year, and an offense that rivals Washington's for ineffectiveness, things are going swimmingly in San Diego. from Seattle Times

[caulfield12]

Yeah for Lilli in CF. If he can play there, the leadoff spot might be a short jump away.

 

 

I'd say the "break-even" point for us NOT to move Alexei Ramirez to CF is an OPS from the combination of Anderson/Owens/Wise/Lillibridge of .740-.750. Based on his last two years offensively, the switch to the AL, the swing changes he's been working on after the injury last season and the mental aspects of playing a position he hasn't played regularly for 5 seasons but now at the big league level with a microscope on him, I don't think it's such a good idea. Or it's an idea born of desperation on the part of KW and Ozzie.

 

Based on last year's results, a platoon of Anderson against lefties and Wise against righties would certainly work, at least THEORETICALLY. Still, you have to take into consideration the jump of around 150 OPS points from Wise coming into last season against RHP and what he produced last year (almost 800). Can you realistically expect him to continue that for a full schedule of playing 4-5 days per week over a 162 game season when he hasn't demonstrated that ability for well over a decade of his baseball career, even at the minor league level?

 

Anything below that mark and you make your line-up much more dangerous moving Ramirez to CF, inserting Beckham at the leadoff spot and starting SS and Getz/Nix as the LH/RH platoon at 2B.

 

That and playing Betemit against tough righties to protect Josh Fields as much as possible...and occasionally Alisay Ramirez and Konerko, too. Stewart would also rest AJ against tough lefties and Sunday day games after night games.

Edited March 13, 2009 by caulfield12

[SouthsideDon48]

Looks like things are going swimmingly.

[Al Lopez's Ghost]

KW's words are subject to another interpretation here. My take on it was he was going to ask his scouts to look at guys in other organizations that he could trade for - guys a year or two away. At the moment he may feel that he could spin one of these younger pitchers - Richards, the Yankee guys, etc., - into a Posednik in training.

[Balta1701]

We've got 4 picks in the first 2 rounds this year. I have no problem with one or two of them being spent on some guys who can run.

[GoodAsGould]

Id really hate if we pass on a better player to draft a "leadoff" guy. In baseball you never draft on need in my opinion, atleast in the early rounds where the top talent is available.

[farmteam]

Austin Maddox ©, Josh Phegley ©, Matt Stassi © This all depends on Tyler Flowers' defensive development.

 

Phegley is a stud.

[Princess Dye]

We have Jordan Danks, Lillibridge, Beckham and Shelby III in the pipeline...not understanding why we're more concerned with 3-5 seasons from now at this point in spring training.

 

 

Of the ones you list, the only one that can be considered a gem is probably not going to be a leadoff hitter when he hits his MLB stride.

 

You keep piling prospects, even if there are current holes you cant assume the future's really set anywhere. Instead of trading for leadoff guy now, I want us to do what we're doing and target next year for a "now" move, when money comes off the books. Right now we're doing a decent job piling prospects but they have to find some more gems who can bat high up in the order.

 

I'd like them to try to draft a leadoff hitter who has the makeup to be a potential No.2 hitter if need be.

 

 

EDIT: although yes i agree with the posts saying you cant draft solely on need. Our situation is a little logjam like though. If you're drafting college guys, I would stay away from power hitters unless there was one guy blowing me away. Reason being I think with CQ, Beckham, AR, Viciedo, Fields, Allen...plus the possibility of one of our aging guys being viable for 2-3 more yrs... based on that, i think you're going to (one way or another) have 3-4-5 locked up for the next few years.

 

1-2 however is very far from locked up and worth investing picks in. The biggest question marks I list above are Viciedo and Allen. Everyone who's viable for the 1-2 slots, organization-wide, is a bigger question mark than all those listed power guys besides Allen.

 

 

 

Plus lets say two of those leadoff hitters pan out. It's no crime, then ya got a 1-2 or maybe 9 and 1. I think Lillibridge is a 9 if he makes it in MLB, in that he's older.

Edited March 13, 2009 by Princess Dye

[ILMOU]

Anything below that mark and you make your line-up much more dangerous moving Ramirez to CF, inserting Beckham at the leadoff spot and starting SS and Getz/Nix as the LH/RH platoon at 2B.

 

If Getz is good enough, there's no need for a platoon - his splits have been nearly identical.

[DaTank]

FUTURE WHITE SOX LEADOFF HITTERS

 

Kentrail Davis, OF, Univ. of Tennessee

AJ Pollock, 2B/OF, Notre Dame

Brett Jackson, OF, Univ. of California (Berkeley)

Jared Mitchel, OF, LSU

 

High Schoolers

Brian Goodwin, OF, HS, North Carolina

Jake Marisnick, OF, HS, California

Levon Washington, OF/2B, HS, Florida

Randal Grichuk, OF, HS, Texas

 

 

Most likely picks around #24 in first round

 

Kendal Volz (RHP), Mike Minor (LHP), Tanner Scheppers (RHP) most likely to be one of these three guys or Goodwin/Pollock, unless Davis or Donovan Tate (son of former UGA football star RB Lars Tate) fall way back in the draft or are seen as unsignable

 

Austin Maddox ©, Josh Phegley ©, Matt Stassi © This all depends on Tyler Flowers' defensive development.

 

Ben Tottle (RHRP), Jason Stoffle (RHRP) After Royce Ring disaster, not likely to go in this direction again of drafting a college reliever. The only other time we did that was with Josh Fogg, but that was with the idea of converting him to a starter out of Univ. of Florida.

 

You'd have to take Tate at #23, if he's still there, IMO. He's considered a a top 5-10 talent at the moment and he could slip to with signability concerns. Unless he wanted a Major League deal, you have to take a talent like him that far into the first round. I wouldn't mind taking a high school catcher at #23, but with a risk like that I'd prefer to take one in the 2nd-3rd round if they're still available (which I doubt one of Maddox, Stassi, or Phegley will be).

 

Like I've said before I wouldn't mind drafting like the Royals did last year; pick up high upside high school talent throughout the first few (1-5) rounds. It would be great to get a really high upside system. Signing a guy like Melville was last year (dropped due to signability concerns) would be awesome, too. How I'd draft during those rounds: 2 lead off types (at least 1 OF), 2 starting pitchers, 1 catcher (assuming a decent high schooler would be available).

 

[beck72]

I have no problem with Kenny talking about looking for leadoff type hitters. The Sox need guys who can hit for a high avg., get on base, and run. If the guys they draft can hit leadoff or #2, they can also hit near the bottom of the order.

 

The sox don't have any sure fire stud leadoff type hitters in their system. Might as well look to add a few who could hit near the top of the order.

[Balta1701]

I have no problem with Kenny talking about looking for leadoff type hitters. The Sox need guys who can hit for a high avg., get on base, and run. If the guys they draft can hit leadoff or #2, they can also hit near the bottom of the order.

 

The sox don't have any sure fire stud leadoff type hitters in their system. Might as well look to add a few who could hit near the top of the order.

As long as they don't neglect the pitching

[SkokieSox]

As long as they don't neglect the pitching

 

I don't see KW ignoring pitching

[BearSox]

I would love Kentrail Davis from Tennessee, but I believe his agent is Boras and that he is likely to go in the 5-15 range.

[Flash Tizzle]

Id really hate if we pass on a better player to draft a "leadoff" guy. In baseball you never draft on need in my opinion, atleast in the early rounds where the top talent is available.

Unless someone drops to #23 overall due to signability concerns (which I doubt), there probably won't be a consensus top player available. After a certain point in the draft, even in the first round, it's difficult to judge who's better than who. It's always the same -- there are raw players with good tools in the latter part of the first round, but they're usually missing something or else they'd be lower.

 

Minnesota drafted Ben Revere 28th overall in 2007. I recall many questioning this selection. If we do our job isn't unreasonable to find our leadoff hitter around our position, if that's what Williams is looking for.

 

Last year's draft, even outside of Beckham, convinced me they're moving in the right direction.