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The top eight top White Sox prospect lists of 2015

Carlos Rodon and Tim Anderson lead the way on the experts' farm system rankings

Here's Frankie Montas.
Here's Frankie Montas.
Rich Pilling/Getty Images

Now that friend of the podcast Jim Callis posted his top 30 White Sox prospects list on MLB.com, we finally have the big board of White Sox prospect lists for 2015.

Just like last year, the White Sox have enough names to fill up an entire list of 10 with players to spare. And when you look at 30-deep lists like Callis', an ordered list that lengthy isn't such a fool's errand anymore. To me, a granular ranking starts falling apart after No. 15 or so, but that's still progress.

Here's how the lists stack up, starting with Larry's detailed two-part look at his top 10.

Rodon
Rodon
Rodon
Anderson
Rodon
Rodon
Rodon
Rodon
Anderson
Anderson
Anderson
Rodon
Anderson
Anderson
Anderson
Anderson
Montas
Danish
Adams
Danish
Adams
Montas
Montas
Montas
Danish
Montas
Johnson
Adams
Montas
Adams
Adams
Adams
Adams
Adams
Montas
Montas
Johnson
Johnson
Danish
Danish
Davidson
Johnson
Adolfo
Beck
Davidson
Adolfo
Michalczewski
Johnson
Hawkins
Hawkins
Danish
Hawkins
Michalczewski
Danish
Johnson
Hawkins
Sanchez
Sanchez
Michalczewski
Sanchez
Danish
Michalczewski
Hawkins
Sanchez
Johnson
Michalczewski
Hawkins
Johnson
Adolfo
Hawkins
Adolfo
Michalczewski
Michalczewski
May
May
May
Hawkins
Sanchez
Thompson
Adolfo

This time, there's a stronger consensus over the first five:

  1. Carlos Rodon
  2. Tim Anderson
  3. Frankie Montas
  4. Spencer Adams
  5. Tyler Danish

Micah Johnson has a pretty good grip on the sixth spot, and then it winds its way down through personal preference territory from there.

Over in the FanPosts, Eagle Bones, actin' all like I don't have a chart that's been 87-percent done for a month and just needs our buddy Callis to complete it, offered a good list of thoughts about the list that are worth your time. But I'll add in a few more.

*Baseball Prospectus wins this year's "Different To Be Different Award" by ranking Tim Anderson ahead of Carlos Rodon, and indirectly explained it by referencing prospect fatigue.

Still, it doesn't compare to last year's DTBD winner -- FanGraphs' Marc Hulet, who ranked Jose Abreu third behind Eric Johnson and Courtney Hawkins. Half of the lists didn't include Abreu in the rankings because they didn't consider him a farm product, but the other three whose criteria allowed him made him an easy No. 1.

Kiley McDaniel is doing the lists now for FanGraphs, so there isn't any of the same weirdness (Hulet ranked Anderson No. 6 last year, too).

*The First Bad Year Penalty crushed Matt Davidson, knocking him off six of eight lists. Courtney Hawkins didn't suffer nearly as much last season, which is either a testament to the age gap, or maybe more to the depth of the system. Hawkins responded better to his second full season, but he didn't experience a climb due to the latter.

*A considerable amount of turnover on this board seems likely when 2016 rolls around. Rodon, Carlos Sanchez and Johnson all seem likely to play their way out of prospect status, and guys like Montas and Davidson could join them. One of those spots will be replaced by the player the Sox select with the eighth-overall pick, but with no second- or third-round selection, you probably won't see another 2015 pick crash the party like Adams did this time around.

*Poised to achieve unanimous top-10 status: Trey Michalczewski, Jacob May, Micker Adolfo. Another guy I like whose name doesn't come up? Luis Martinez.

*Regarding Montas, here's the first dose of PITCHf/x data from his start against the Rangers on Thursday.

Pitch Type Velo (Max) H-Break V-Break Count Strikes / % Swings / % Whiffs / % BIP (No Out) SNIPs / %
FF (Four-seam Fastball) 96.1 (99.6) -5.88 8.31 27 20 / 74.1% 12 / 44.4% 0 / 0.0% 4 (1) 16 / 69.6%
SL (Slider) 87.9 (90.4) 1.37 1.67 9 6 / 66.7% 5 / 55.6% 1 / 11.1% 3 (1) 3 / 50.0%
FC (Cutter) 87.4 (87.4) -0.17 4.96 1 1 / 100.0% 1 / 100.0% 1 / 100.0% 0 (0) 1 / 100.0%