Post-draft grab bag

The immediate post-draft period, and the weekend that’s followed, provided some nice coverage of the draft, and our White Sox selections.

Tennessee coaches Tony Vitello, Frank Anderson share insight on first-rounder Garrett Crochet
Joe Binder, Sox On 35th

On Wednesday night, first-year scouting director Mike Shirley and Co. continued the trend of going the college route by taking a southpaw with a lot of upside in Garrett Crochet. The Tennessee Volunteer helps fill a major need in the system – left-handed pitching – while also having good enough stuff to appear out of the bullpen as soon as this season. Though he doesn’t necessarily boast the same track record as other starting pitchers at his level, there is no question that Crochet has the tools and potential to make him successful professionally. In order to get a deeper understanding of this year’s first-rounder, who better to turn to than those who know him best – Tennessee’s head coach Tony Vitello and pitching coach Frank Anderson.

Binder dials up Crochet’s college connections and gets a deep dive into what makes him tick. Exhaustive work here.

Refugio Skipper Jarod Kay sees a Bright Future for White Sox Draft Pick Jared Kelley
Patrick Flowers, The Dugout

One team that benefited greatly from the heavy run on college prospects was the Chicago White Sox, assuming they can reach a deal with the No. 47 overall pick, Jared Kelley that will keep him from ever hitting campus in Austin this coming fall.

I got to spend some time on the phone this afternoon with Refugio High School’s head baseball coach, Jarod Kay. Coach Kay provided me with some excellent insight on the newest member of the White Sox, Jared Kelley.

More compelling as a prospect, almost without a doubt, is Jared Kelley. And while I’d be more interested in reading the story of how Kelley somehow fell to the White Sox, Patrick gets some nice stuff from Kelley’s high school coach, straight from the birthplace of Nolan Ryan.

Off the Beaten Path: Adisyn Coffey’s Path to the White Sox
Patrick Flowers, The Dugout

When MLB Network’s Matt Vasgersian stepped to the podium in Studio 42 and announced that the White Sox had selected Wabash Valley Community College right-handed pitcher Adisyn Coffey, the in-studio crew suddenly seemed at a loss for words.

White Sox fans felt the same way. Within minutes of the selection, I received two text messages that were just a single character in length… “?”.

Patrick doubles down on White Sox draft choices by dialing up another draft pick’s coach. While it’s hard to take any of the picks after Round 2 too seriously, given they are essentially “minimum guys,” Coffey’s two-way play — encouraged by White Sox scouting director Mike Shirley — is compelling.

White Sox draft recap: A delicious duo
Brett Ballantini, South Side Hit Pen at Sports Illustrated

Rather than court controversy and debate, as is the nature of most drafts, the Chicago White Sox went out this week and just got the job done.

Recent moves by the team indicate an uncommon financial aggression:

Outbidding St. Louis and others to secure [insert year here] Opening Day center fielder Luis Robert

Storming out of the gate to gobble up Yasmani Grandal this past fall, before most other team's alarm clocks had even rung to wake them up for free agency

Becoming essentially the only team of 30 to swallow hard and have some straight talk with blue-chip prep Jared Kelley, determining his price to forego the University of Texas — and then, mercy mercy me, meeting it.

I guess this is self-promotion? Oh, well. It’s a comprehensive, quick-bite look at the draft class, and also the only place you can see basically Shirley’s entire Day 2 post-draft comments. It’s a pretty cool watch, and includes cameos from all of your favorite White Sox writers.

2020 Draft Preview: Jared Kelley (RHP)
James Fox, Future Sox

In our Mock Draft 2.0 here at FutureSox, I projected Jared Kelley to the Chicago White Sox with the 11th overall pick. The scouting department was all over the righty this spring and he’s one of their realistic options. Baseball America’s latest attempt from Carlos Collazo sends Kelley to the Washington Nationals. Collazo states that “there’s a solid chance that Kelley goes inside the top 15, but deciphering which landing spot has been tricky at this point.”

Who cares about a draft profile, after the draft? Well, let’s give James some shine, because he did have Kelley going to the White Sox. OK, it was in the first round, not the second, but as you might imagine, Mr. Fox thinks the White Sox draft was Fantastic.

Morning Music
Well, I guess all the “meaningful” stuff isn’t going over that well. Too much politics, huh? OK, here’s just about the least political band I can think of at the moment:

... and the magic music makes your morning mood ...