Bryce Bush
6´0´´
200 pounds
Bats: Right
Age: 19
SSS rank among all third basemen in the system: 2
[In honor of it being “Bryce Bush Day” here at SSS, I figured it would make sense to bump up the release of Bush as our No. 25 prospect to today. If you haven’t read Dan Victor’s excellent profile on the Bush boys (father and son), do it now. We’ll wait. — BB]
Most fans, including yours truly, believed that drafting Bush in the 33rd round of last year’s draft was more or less a goodwill gesture, as opposed to believing that he’d actually bypass a scholarship with the Mississippi State Bulldogs. After all, Bush was the second-rated prep prospect in Michigan, third-ranked prep third base prospect in the country, and the 52nd-ranked prep prospect in the nation, according to PerfectGame. However, I can speak for most fans in saying that I’m glad I was wrong! Close to a week after being drafted, Bush signed for $290,000, the equivalent of sixth-round money.
Bush dominated in his brief 14-game stint with the AZL White Sox by slashing .442/.538/.605, with one homer, eight RBIs, one stolen base, eight walks (15.4%) and just four strikeouts (7.7%) in 43 at-bats. Bush was promoted to Great Falls on August 3, and while he struggled a bit, he still did relatively well considering he was 2.5 years younger than league average. In 24 games totaling 96 at-bats for the Voyagers, Bush slashed .250/.327/.385 with two homers, 10 RBIs, three stolen bases, 10 walks (9.3%) and 21 strikeouts (19.4%). Combined with both teams for 2018, Bush slashed .309/.396/.453 over 139 at-bats, with three homers, 18 RBIs, four stolen bases, 18 walks (11.3%) and 25 strikeouts (15.6%).
Third base was the only position Bush played last year in rookie ball, and in 30 games he committed 12 errors. He has a good arm and has solid speed; his difficulties at the position may be attributable to becoming acclimated to the speed of the game. Even in Arizona and Great Falls, the game is exponentially quicker than it is at the prep level.
Bush turned 19 last December, and at 6´0´´ and 200 pounds, he has the projectable build to hit the ball a long way. Eventually, if he doesn’t succeed at third defensively, Bush may end up moving to a corner outfield position or first base. Ideally, he’ll stick at the hot corner since that’s arguably the position with the weakest depth in the Sox system.
Bush has the intangibles to do what it takes to advance to succeed in professional ball. He took on an aggressive assignment to Kannapolis to begin 2019, which tells you the kind of high hopes the White Sox have for Bush. Per Dan Victor’s feature, youngster had vision issues in spring training, and was allowed to play for a couple of weeks, battling a horrible slump, while essentially unable to see the ball. With corrected vision, Bush immediately took off, and is currently slashing .223/.309/.385, mashing hell out of the ball of late. He’s also begun seeing time in both right field and at DH, as the White Sox figure out on the fly where his defensive future lies.
Take a look!
Video courtesy of our pals at 2080 Baseball.
2019 South Side Sox Top 100 Prospects
25. Bryce Bush, 3B
31. Ryan Burr, RHRP
32. Lincoln Henzman, RHSP
33. Caleb Frare, LHRP
34. José Ruiz, RHRP
35. Lency Delgado, SS
36. Zach Thompson, RHRP
37. Camilo Quinteiro, 2B
38. A.J. Puckett, RHSP
39. Amado Nuñez, 2B
40. Jordan Guerrero, LHSP
41. Tyler Frost, RF
42. Danny Mendick, SS
43. Yeyson Yrizarri, SS
44. Kade McClure, RHSP
45. Luis Mieses, CF
46. Ti’quan Forbes, 3B
47. Thyago Vieira, RHRP
48. Corey Zangari, 1B
49. Yermin Mercedes, C
50. Anderson Comas, RF
51. Gunnar Troutwine, C
52. Codi Heuer, RHSP
53. Andrew Perez, LHRP
54. Josue Guerrero, LF
55. Jacob Lindgren, LHRP
56. Ryan Cordell, CF
57. Joel Booker, LF
58. Bennett Sousa, LHRP
59. Blake Battenfield, RHSP
60. Caberea Weaver, CF
61. Matt Foster, RHRP
62. Tate Blackman, 2B
63. Hunter Schryver, LHRP
64. Romy González, CF
65. Carlos Perez, C
66. Trey Michalczewski, 3B
67. Taylor Varnell, LHSP
68. John Parke, LHSP
69. Mike Morrison, RHRP
70. Zach Remillard, 3B
71. Luis Martinez, RHSP
72. Zach Lewis, RHSP
73. José Nin, RHRP
74. Colton Turner, LHSP
75. Jhoandro Alfonso, C
76. Ramon Beltre, 2B
77. Charlie Tilson, CF
78. Hunter Kiel, RHRP
79. Jason Bilous, RHSP
80. Nick Johnson, RHRP
81. Danny Dopico, RHRP
82. Harvin Mendoza, 1B
83. Logan Sowers, RF
84. Maiker Feliz, 3B
85. Brayan Herrera, RHSP
86. Craig Dedelow, LF
87. Wilber Pérez, RHSP
88. Kyle Kubat, LHRP
89. Johan Dominguez, RHRP
90. Mitch Roman, 2B
91. Ty Greene, C
92. Tanner Banks, LHSP
93. Jake Elliott, RHRP
94. Kevin Escorcia, LHRP
95. Luis Rodriguez, RHSP
96. Ian Dawkins, LF
97. Victor Diaz, RHRP
98. Travis Moniot, LF
99. Will Kincanon, RHRP
100. Brian Clark, LHRP
More information on South Side Top Prospects.