Chicago White Sox Farm System Overview – 2010
Overview
The Chicago White Sox don’t exactly have the most stacked system in the world. They have three good, but not great prospects at the top and a pretty steep drop off thereafter. Still, it’s important to note that the system would be stronger if Gordon Beckham were still considered a prospect. But he graduated to the Majors just one year after being drafted and put up an impressive rookie season. Another infielder, Chris Getz also graduated from prospect status.
White Sox GM Kenny Williams cleaned out a lot of the organization’s depth in trades. For Jake Peavy, Williams sent off Aaron Poreda, Clayton Richard, and Dexter Carter to San Diego. For reliever Tony Pena, Williams gave up Brandon Allen. It’s a philosophy Williams has used for a while now and it helped him turn the 2005 White Sox into World Series Champions.
The team has also successfully tapped into Cuba, with Alexei Ramirez producing at the MLB level and the team signing Dayan Viciedo last off-season.
But overall, the system lacks depth and it’s filled with a lot of big arms that project to be relievers in the long run. To be restocked, the team has to draft successfully and the last two years they’ve been able to do just that. You couldn’t have asked for more out of the 2008 draft class as they scored big with Gordon Beckham and drafted several players that have developed into legitimate prospects. And the 2009 draft is off to a solid start with several intriguing picks in the first few rounds. Can they repeat that success in 2010?
White Sox Top-15 Prospects
Key Links1. Tyler Flowers | C | Age – 24 | Grade – B
2. Jared Mitchell | OF | Age – 21 | Grade – B
3. Dan Hudson | RHP | Age – 23 | Grade – B
4. Jordan Danks | CF | Age – 23 | Grade – B-
5. Brent Morel | 3b | Age – 23 | Grade – C+
6. Dayan Viciedo | 3b | Age – 21 | Grade – C+
7. Trayce Thompson | OF | Age – 19 | Grade – C+
8. David Holmberg | LHP | Age – 18 | Grade – C+
9. Miguel Gonzalez | C | Age – 19 | Grade – C+
10. Christian Marrero | 1b/OF | Age – 23 | Grade – C+
11. C.J. Retherford | 2b/UTI | Age – 24 | Grade – C+
12. Santos Rodriguez | LHP | Age – 22 | Grade – C+
13. Jhonny Nunez | RHP | Age – 24 | Grade – C+
14. Josh Phegley | C | Age – 22 | Grade – C
15. John Shelby Jr. | OF | Age – 24 | Grade – C
› Prospect Primer (Grading Criteria Explained)
› Team Page Listings
› Index of 2010 Top-15 Prospect Lists
› Index of 2009 Top-15 Prospect Lists
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