Baseball America updated its list of top 10 White Sox prospects Monday, and it comes as no surprise that shortstop Tim Anderson occupies the No. 1 spot.
Anderson, the Sox's 2013 first-round draft pick, made major strides both offensively and defensively while playing with the Double-A Birmingham Barons in 2015. He posted a .312/.350/.429 slash line with five home runs, 46 RBIs and 49 stolen bases in 125 games.
Anderson is expected to start the season in Triple-A Charlotte, and could be in line to make his major-league debut sometime in the 2016 season.
Second on the list is last year's first-round draft pick, right-hander Carson Fulmer. The Vanderbilt product threw 26 minor-league innings in 2015 and struck out 26 while compiling a 2.08 ERA. The Sox have a history of fast-tracking first-round college pitchers (Chris Sale, Carlos Rodon) to the big leagues, but fans should not expect to see Fulmer on the South Side in 2016. He's a fine prospect, but not quite as advanced at this stage of his career as Sale and Rodon were.
Right-handed pitcher Spencer Adams ranks third. One thing I like about the 6-foot-3 Adams is he throws strikes. He split 2015 between Single-A Kannapolis and Winston-Salem. In 24 combined starts and 129.1 innings, Adams went 12-5 with a 2.99 ERA. He fanned 96 and walked just 18.
Twenty-year-old third base prospect Trey Michalczewski checks in at No. 4. Michalczewski posted a .259/.295/.366 slash with seven home runs and 75 RBIs in 127 games at Winston-Salem last year. The kid is 6-foot-3, 210 pounds, so the Sox are hoping he develops into a player with extra-base pop.
Jacob May is No. 5. The speedy outfielder swiped 37 bags in 98 games at Birmingham last year, but he's just a punch-and-judy hitter at this point, as evidenced by his .275/.329/.334 slash line.
Rounding at the top 10 are right-handed pitcher Tyler Danish, outfielder Adam Engel, left-handed pitcher Jordan Guerrero, outfielder Courtney Hawkins and first baseman Corey Zangari.
Engel is probably the most notable of those five names. He played his way onto the list by winning the MVP of the Arizona Fall League this year.
Showing posts with label Courtney Hawkins. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Courtney Hawkins. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 5, 2016
Thursday, July 3, 2014
White Sox prospect update
Thursday is an off-day for the White Sox, so let's take a moment to update the activities of some of the top prospects in the organization.
1. Matt Davidson, 3B, Charlotte -- Davidson continued his hottest stretch of the season on Wednesday, going 2-for-5 with two doubles for the Knights. He hit two home runs in the second game of a doubleheader on Monday night, including a walk-off blast in the 10th inning that lifted Charlotte to a 7-5 win. Davidson had an extremely poor first two months, so his overall slash line looks sickly: .206/.282/.419. But he hit .353 over his last 10 games in June. He homered nine times during the month, and now ranks second in the International League with 15 home runs. At least he's trending in the right direction.
2. Micah Johnson, 2B, Charlotte -- The "game changer" started the year at Double-A Birmingham and dominated opposing pitchers, posting a .329/.414/.466 slash with three homers, 16 RBIs and 10 steals in 37 games. Since his promotion to Charlotte, the numbers are a little more modest: .272/.303/.353 with a homer, 15 RBIs and five steals in 31 games. To be fair, there's often an adjustment period when a player is promoted to the next level, and that's been the case for Johnson. He's highly regarded enough that he was named to the U.S. roster for the Futures Game. It wouldn't be shocking if he gets a September callup this year. Scouts rank his speed as an 80 on the 20-to-80 scale, so that tool combined with his decent-to-good bat will likely get him to the majors. The question is, is he a second baseman or an outfielder moving forward?
3. Tim Anderson, SS, Winston-Salem -- The Sox recently got bad news on Anderson, who was hit by a pitch and will miss four to six weeks with a fracture in his right wrist. Anderson continued to play after he was struck, but the pain worsened and he was shut down after an X-ray revealed the fracture. He was hitting .297/.323/.472 at the time of the injury with six home runs, 10 stolen bases, 31 RBIs and 48 runs scored in 68 games. Anderson's glove is a much bigger question mark than his bat. He's committed a whopping 31 errors this season. Still, the Sox have given no indication they plan to move him off shortstop.
4. Tyler Danish, RHP, Winston Salem -- The second-round pick in the 2013 draft started the year in Kannapolis and overmatched opposing hitters, going 3-0 with 0.71 ERA in seven starts. He was elevated to Winston-Salem, which is an aggressive placement for a 19-year-old kid. In seven starts at High-A, he's 1-1 with a 5.16 ERA, but at least he's got 26 strikeouts in 29.2 IP over seven starts. He recently returned from a short stint on the disabled list, and his three-quarters arm slot (think Jake Peavy) has some scouts concerned about his durability. But, Danish has a 95 mph heater with good sink, and the Sox like pitchers with good sinkers. Danish is a longer-term prospect. You won't be seeing him in Chicago this year or next year. Maybe 2016 if all goes well.
5. Courtney Hawkins, OF, Winston-Salem -- I heard a report today that Hawkins might be headed to the seven-day DL after crashing into a wall in left field on Wednesday night. I haven't heard anything about the extent of the injury, but hopefully it is not serious. The 2012 first-round pick dropped on some of the prospect lists after a wretched 2013 that saw him hit .178/.249/.384 in High-A. Again, though, that was an aggressive placement by the Sox. Hawkins was a 19-year-old playing against older guys last summer. This year, he's repeating the same level and has improved. He's hitting .255/.337/.482 with 13 home runs and 59 RBIs in 79 games. That's a good RBI total. He had only 62 in all of 2013. I think 2015 will be the big year for Hawkins. He'll probably be moved up to Double-A, and we'll see if he can keep his career on an upward arc.
1. Matt Davidson, 3B, Charlotte -- Davidson continued his hottest stretch of the season on Wednesday, going 2-for-5 with two doubles for the Knights. He hit two home runs in the second game of a doubleheader on Monday night, including a walk-off blast in the 10th inning that lifted Charlotte to a 7-5 win. Davidson had an extremely poor first two months, so his overall slash line looks sickly: .206/.282/.419. But he hit .353 over his last 10 games in June. He homered nine times during the month, and now ranks second in the International League with 15 home runs. At least he's trending in the right direction.
2. Micah Johnson, 2B, Charlotte -- The "game changer" started the year at Double-A Birmingham and dominated opposing pitchers, posting a .329/.414/.466 slash with three homers, 16 RBIs and 10 steals in 37 games. Since his promotion to Charlotte, the numbers are a little more modest: .272/.303/.353 with a homer, 15 RBIs and five steals in 31 games. To be fair, there's often an adjustment period when a player is promoted to the next level, and that's been the case for Johnson. He's highly regarded enough that he was named to the U.S. roster for the Futures Game. It wouldn't be shocking if he gets a September callup this year. Scouts rank his speed as an 80 on the 20-to-80 scale, so that tool combined with his decent-to-good bat will likely get him to the majors. The question is, is he a second baseman or an outfielder moving forward?
3. Tim Anderson, SS, Winston-Salem -- The Sox recently got bad news on Anderson, who was hit by a pitch and will miss four to six weeks with a fracture in his right wrist. Anderson continued to play after he was struck, but the pain worsened and he was shut down after an X-ray revealed the fracture. He was hitting .297/.323/.472 at the time of the injury with six home runs, 10 stolen bases, 31 RBIs and 48 runs scored in 68 games. Anderson's glove is a much bigger question mark than his bat. He's committed a whopping 31 errors this season. Still, the Sox have given no indication they plan to move him off shortstop.
4. Tyler Danish, RHP, Winston Salem -- The second-round pick in the 2013 draft started the year in Kannapolis and overmatched opposing hitters, going 3-0 with 0.71 ERA in seven starts. He was elevated to Winston-Salem, which is an aggressive placement for a 19-year-old kid. In seven starts at High-A, he's 1-1 with a 5.16 ERA, but at least he's got 26 strikeouts in 29.2 IP over seven starts. He recently returned from a short stint on the disabled list, and his three-quarters arm slot (think Jake Peavy) has some scouts concerned about his durability. But, Danish has a 95 mph heater with good sink, and the Sox like pitchers with good sinkers. Danish is a longer-term prospect. You won't be seeing him in Chicago this year or next year. Maybe 2016 if all goes well.
5. Courtney Hawkins, OF, Winston-Salem -- I heard a report today that Hawkins might be headed to the seven-day DL after crashing into a wall in left field on Wednesday night. I haven't heard anything about the extent of the injury, but hopefully it is not serious. The 2012 first-round pick dropped on some of the prospect lists after a wretched 2013 that saw him hit .178/.249/.384 in High-A. Again, though, that was an aggressive placement by the Sox. Hawkins was a 19-year-old playing against older guys last summer. This year, he's repeating the same level and has improved. He's hitting .255/.337/.482 with 13 home runs and 59 RBIs in 79 games. That's a good RBI total. He had only 62 in all of 2013. I think 2015 will be the big year for Hawkins. He'll probably be moved up to Double-A, and we'll see if he can keep his career on an upward arc.
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
Jose Abreu, other White Sox prospects hit the field in Glendale
The biggest curiosity surrounding the White Sox coming into 2014 has to be newly signed Cuban slugger Jose Abreu. How much of an impact will he make in his first season in the United States? Nobody knows, but we all know he needs to be good if the Sox have any hope of hanging around in the AL Central race this year.
The Sox are getting a look at Abreu and some of their other young players this week at a three-day hitting camp at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. Newly acquired third baseman Matt Davidson and center fielder Adam Eaton also are participating, along with Josh Phegley, Marcus Semien, Courtney Hawkins, Jared Mitchell, Trayce Thompson and Keenyn Walker.
According to a report by CSN's Dan Hayes, the Sox are pleased with what they've seen from Abreu so far. Of course, what else would they say? Even if he looked bad, they would still say he looked good. But now is the time of year for optimism, and Sox fans can hope Abreu's prodigious power will come to the forefront when the season begins March 31.
“That’s a strong man right here,” new hitting coach Todd Steverson said of Abreu. “That’s a big man. He has a nice smooth, compact approach. He didn’t try to do too much with the ball and the ball was flying off his bat. I think he has a nice bright future coming up with him.”
“We try to keep in mind that it’s Jan. 14 and we still have a ways to go,” GM Rick Hahn added in Hayes' report. “But just watching Jose go through his work, you saw that professionalism as well as the plus-plus power on display today in only his first couple of rounds of BP. He’s a very serious hitter. He’s one who goes up there with a plan and has a great deal of ability and it’s going to be fun to see how this plays out over the next couple of years.”
It's good to hear that Abreu goes to the plate with a plan. The same couldn't be said of a lot of White Sox hitters last year. Hopefully, Steverson can help in that regard. After scoring a league-worst 598 runs last year, the Sox have nowhere to go but up offensively.
The Sox are getting a look at Abreu and some of their other young players this week at a three-day hitting camp at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz. Newly acquired third baseman Matt Davidson and center fielder Adam Eaton also are participating, along with Josh Phegley, Marcus Semien, Courtney Hawkins, Jared Mitchell, Trayce Thompson and Keenyn Walker.
According to a report by CSN's Dan Hayes, the Sox are pleased with what they've seen from Abreu so far. Of course, what else would they say? Even if he looked bad, they would still say he looked good. But now is the time of year for optimism, and Sox fans can hope Abreu's prodigious power will come to the forefront when the season begins March 31.
“That’s a strong man right here,” new hitting coach Todd Steverson said of Abreu. “That’s a big man. He has a nice smooth, compact approach. He didn’t try to do too much with the ball and the ball was flying off his bat. I think he has a nice bright future coming up with him.”
“We try to keep in mind that it’s Jan. 14 and we still have a ways to go,” GM Rick Hahn added in Hayes' report. “But just watching Jose go through his work, you saw that professionalism as well as the plus-plus power on display today in only his first couple of rounds of BP. He’s a very serious hitter. He’s one who goes up there with a plan and has a great deal of ability and it’s going to be fun to see how this plays out over the next couple of years.”
It's good to hear that Abreu goes to the plate with a plan. The same couldn't be said of a lot of White Sox hitters last year. Hopefully, Steverson can help in that regard. After scoring a league-worst 598 runs last year, the Sox have nowhere to go but up offensively.
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