BP's Goldstein Taking Draft Questions

25. White Sox. Chicago general manager Kenny Williams is demanding more high-ceiling talent, and his club holds out hope for a shot at Bumgarner that won't materialize. The White Sox' second choice appears to be Withrow, though the Phillies could ruin that for them. Plan C could be North Carolina prep shortstop Justin Jackson, Middlebrooks or Virginia prep righthander Neil Ramirez.

Projected Pick: Justin Jackson, ss, Roberson HS, Asheville, N.C.

my guess is at least the top 15 teams know who they are taking already, but ESPN will make them drag it out for 5 minutes so guys who just started doing their draft homework last week can tell us why they are important.

It will be a long, long day tomorrow.  I'll post any BA reports on Sox draftees as the picks are made.

Very high pick.  I've heard some Matthew LeCroy comps on him!

despite the 'experts' hype of all the h.s. kids.

sox are sure to have a shot at a high upside sr.

say that 5 times fast.

The Sox wanted that guy

Main, Borbon

please God

I could see us taking Michael Main.  He fits that power arm mandate.

Glad we didn't set suckered into Schmidt from Arkansas.  Our last big Razorback pick was the extraordinary Danny Wright.

There goes Main at 24

takes an option away

#37 in BA

37. Aaron Poreda, lhp
School: San Francisco. Class: Jr.
B-T: L-L. Ht.: 6-6. Wt.: 240. Birthdate: 10/1/86.
Scouting Report: Poreda wasn't on the radar screen in high school; he focused more on football as a defensive end/tight end. He did pitch a bit, even tossing a no-hitter, but was awkward and had suspect arm action. In three seasons at San Francisco working with pitching coach Greg Moore, however, he has developed into a first-round candidate and one of the nation's hardest-throwing lefthanders. Poreda works off the fastball almost as much as UC Riverside's James Simmons (No. 47), and like Simmons, it's his only above-average pitch. While his fastball was flat and 89-90 mph in his 2007 opener, he has been consistently in the low 90s since then, touching 96-97 and regularly hitting 94. He throws plenty of strikes (though he lacks true command), and with his 6-foot-6, 240-pound frame, he should prove durable. He doesn't pitch as downhill as he should at his size, in part because of his low three-quarters arm slot. Poreda's arm action and lower slot make his breaking ball a fringe-average pitch at best, though it has improved. He has the makings of a changeup but hasn't thrown it much, sticking to his fastball. He had experimented with a higher slot to aid his breaking ball, but the move cost his fastball some of its late life and was back to his old slot.

W     L     ERA     G     SV     IP     H     BB     SO
7     6     2.89     14     0     100     93     18     66

sounds like Matt Thornton to me.  

They're stacked with Porcello

The Tiggers better never complain about being a small money team again.  Miller and Porcello in back-to-back years.  They are going to stuff us for the next 10 years.

that we were at no point considering Porcello.  The rumor was that if he went past #10, only one team before the Yankees was interested, and that evidently was the Tiggs.

Pick #89

45. Nevin Griffith, rhp
School: Middleton HS, Tampa. Class: Sr.
B-T: R-R. Ht.: 6-4. Wt.: 180. Birthdate: 3/23/89.
Scouting Report: The quintessential projectable high school pitcher, Griffith showed all the ingredients of a premium prospect as an underclassman and put it all together this spring. He solidified his status as a high-round pick by dominating in two showdowns with crosstown rival Michael Burgess and Hillsborough High, the first of which was the buzz of amateur baseball for weeks. Griffith is long, lean and athletic with a whippy arm action. He has improved his balance over the rubber and better incorporated his lower half in his delivery, and his velocity spiked, touching 96 mph and humming along at 90-92 with sink on most nights. His 80-84 mph slider is a plus pitch at times, and he throws a more traditional curveball as well. He has feel for a changeup that he can keep down in the zone. Outside of inconsistency and fatigue, there isn't much to knock on Griffith, who profiles as a middle-of-the-rotation starter and should be drafted in the supplemental round.

W     L     ERA     G     SV     IP     H     BB     SO
7     2     0.92     11     1     68     36     18     119

#119 overall

From Homewood-Flossmoor.  My alma mater.

76. John Ely, rhp
School: Miami (Ohio). Class: Jr.
B-T: R-R. Ht.: 6-1. Wt.: 190. Birthdate: 5/13/86.
Scouting Report: Ely can't fill out a uniform or light up a radar gun as well as his Miami teammate Connor Graham can, but he has outperformed Graham in college and in the Cape Cod League and has a better chance to be a major league starter. Ely is just 6-foot-1 and 190 pounds, and he has a head jerk in his maximum-effort delivery. His stuff is hard to argue with, however. His 89-94 mph fastball and his vastly improved changeup both qualify as plus pitches, and his curve is an average offering. Though he lacks smooth mechanics, he throws strikes and has a resilient arm that never has given him problems. His delivery also gives him deception that makes him harder to hit. Ely also is an intense competitor who helped his cause by pitching a complete-game seven-hitter at Texas in March. Though Graham scores better in what the NFL would call "measurables," Ely should get drafted slightly ahead of him, probably in the second round.

W     L     ERA     G     SV     IP     H     BB     SO
7     3     2.94     12     0     89     83     21     81

149th overall

167. Leroy Hunt, rhp
School: Sacramento CC. Class: So.
B-T: R-R. Ht.: 6-6. Wt.: 220. Birthdate: 11/28/87.
Scouting Report: The Reds drafted Hunt in 2005 as an outfielder out of high school and followed him to Sacramento City College. He had enormous raw power as a hitter but never seemed to get comfortable at the plate against good velocity, so Sac City moved him to the mound to take advantage of his arm strength. While he remains raw, Hunt has one of the best fastballs in the state. It has heavy sink and boring armside run, and Hunt throws it in the 90-94 mph range, touching 95 at times. His secondary stuff (slider, changeup) is almost nonexistent, but that didn't stop him from a 40-inning scoreless streak this spring, including a pair of outings against better-regarded Matt Thompson of Santa Rosa (Calif.) Junior College. Hunt needs to develop either his slider or changeup to have a second pitch, a concern because he hasn't shown much aptitude so far. He's committed to Oral Roberts, but should be an easy sign. With his intimidating size (6-foot-6, 220 pounds) and fastball, he profiles as a power reliever.

W     L     ERA     G     SV     IP     H     BB     SO
7     3     1.87     15     1     72     50     22     76

if the Sox will choose anyone who picks up a bat tomorrow.

look to have an expensive and talented group of prospects.  They just added Casey Crosby.

179th overall

Nathan Jones, rhp, Northern Kentucky

Not in BA top 200 and ranked 9th among KY prospects, but he's the 3rd to get drafted.

http://www.nku.edu/~athletics/MBaseball/2007/Players/njones.html

era      w-l      app-gs  cg      sho      sv      ip      h      r      er      bb      so          
2.88      4-5      16-7      2      0/1      2      56.1  37      26      18      38      60