First 5 rounds: Jake Burger (1-11), Gavin Sheets (2-49), Luis Gonzalez (3-87), Lincoln Henzman (4-117), Tyler Johnson (5-147).
Also notable: Kade McClure (6-177), Evan Skoug (7-207), Sam Abbott (8-237), Tate Blackman (13-387)
The White Sox employed a pretty simple draft strategy here: college, college, college. Each of their first seven picks were college players, and after they selected Washington high schooler Sam Abbott in the eighth round, the South Siders drafted another 26 straight college players. Overall, 33 of their first 34 selections came out of college, but there were some other interesting patterns. From the 20th round to the 34th round, they not only selected fifteen straight college players, but all fifteen were college seniors. They then finished the draft with five of their final six picks being high schoolers. Though their first three picks were all hitters, the White Sox were pretty diverse in their selections as far as college picks go, grabbing power (Jake Burger, Gavin Sheets, Evan Skoug, Craig Dedelow), speed (Luis Gonzalez), relief help (Lincoln Henzman, Tyler Johnson), starting pitching (Kade McClure), and even a water polo player (Sam Abbott) – more on that later.
1-11: 3B Jake Burger (my rank: 20)
A year after selecting power hitting college player Zack Collins in the first round, the White Sox took a similar player offensively. Jake Burger has been an absolute monster at the plate for Missouri State over the past three seasons, slashing .339/.420/.620 with 47 home runs over 176 games for the Bears. The one thing missing coming into this season was plate discipline, but he upped his walk rate to 14.1% this year while dropping his strikeout rate to 12.5%. His swing, which features a bit of an arm bar and is more based on strength than bat speed, is set up so that he needs to see the ball out of the hand to have success, and this bodes well for his future. Offensive numbers are typically inflated in the Missouri Valley Conference, where Burger plays, so don't go around thinking Burger is some generational hitter yet, but he has a great chance to be a middle-of-the-order bat for the ChiSox down the road. He'll have to be, because his defense at third base is so-so and may necessitate a move to first base, though he has gotten high marks for his work ethic.
2-49: 1B Gavin Sheets (my rank: 64)
If Burger does move to first base, that will leave the next player drafted, Gavin Sheets, in a bit of a predicament. Sheets is limited to first base defensively, but the bat has just as much upside as Burger's, even if it has a bit more risk. While Burger hit .328 with 22 home runs this year for MSU, Sheets slashed .322/.429/.634 with 20 home runs for Wake Forest. He also had a high walk rate, coming in at 15.7%, which is important because he has some adjustments he needs to make in his left handed swing. He has a lot of movement in his front shoulder both before and during his swing, causing his head to move, and and his explosive swing isn't in the zone for long. The high walk rate and low-ish strikeout rate (11.8%) bode well for his ability to make adjustments, but he does need to make them. Like Missouri State, Wake Forest tends to be a hitter-friendly environment.
3-87: CF Luis Gonzalez (my rank: 100)
Here is a third straight player from a very hitter-friendly home park, but he's not a power guy like Burger and Sheets. Instead, Gonzalez's game revolves around pretty much everything but power, and he has gotten numerous comps to Braves center fielder Ender Inciarte. Gonzalez, not related to the Luis Gonzalez who won the 2001 World Series for the Diamondbacks, slashed .361/.500/.589 with eight home runs for New Mexico, showing the potential of a future four-tool player. Heck, he even made eleven starts for the Lobos, although he wasn't nearly as good at pitching as he was at hitting (6.51 ERA, 1.87 WHIP). His 20% walk rate was among the best in college baseball, and as a left handed hitter, he has a lot going for him. The only knocks on him as a player are his small stature (skinny 6' build) and his long swing, which I believe may have difficulty translating up. He won't be a power hitter, so with his offensive value tied to getting on base, he'll need to make he can either catch up to pro pitching with his current swing or shorten it significantly.
4-117: RHP Lincoln Henzman (unranked)
Besides having a great reliever name, Lincoln Henzman took a big step forward this year as Louisville's closer, putting up a 1.72 ERA and a 0.79 WHIP through 26 appearances. Ironically, the man who Henzman replaced as closer, Zack Burdi, was drafted in the first round by the White Sox last year. He won't wow you with his stuff, coming in with a low to mid 90's sinker and a decent slider/changeup combination, but he's a competent reliever who could be the first player from this White Sox draft class to reach the majors. One drawback of him already being a reliever, though, is that his stuff has presumably already had that "jump forward" that you get when converting from the rotation, though he does have some projection left at 6'2".
5-147: RHP Tyler Johnson (my rank: 111)
The White Sox made it back-to-back relievers here, with Tyler Johnson having served as South Carolina's closer for the past two seasons. He was great in 2016 (2.42 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, 59/8 K/BB), but he missed time to arm troubles this year and his command wasn't quite as good when he was on the mound (2.39 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, 40/15 K/BB). Johnson stands 6'2" but his mid to upper 90's fastball can blow college hitters away, though he needs to work on adding an effective secondary pitch. He has toyed with some breaking balls, but he's mostly relied on pushing his fastball up to 100 MPH to get hitters out in the SEC rather than buckling knees with a slider or curve. He's not presently ready to pitch in the majors, but if he can make adjustments quickly in pro ball, it could be an interesting race to see if he can beat Henzman to Chicago.
7-207: C/1B Evan Skoug (my rank: 74)
Because Skoug fell to the seventh round, signability may become an issue even though he's a college junior. He entered the season on the outskirts of the first round discussion after slashing .301/.390/.502 with nine home runs as a sophomore at TCU, but his 16.2% strikeout rate scared off some evaluators and contact was seen as a red flag by most. Then he slumped horribly to begin the season before a second half surge that can give the observer numerous takeaways. Overall, he slashed .272/.380/.553 with 20 home runs, but his strikeout rate ballooned to a whopping 30.5%. His position is unclear at the moment, as he is a catcher for the Horned Frogs and is working extremely hard to remain a catcher in pro ball, but his defense is so-so at the moment and may ultimately force him to first base, putting more pressure on his bat. Offensively, Skoug has big league power, but the strikeout rate is a serious concern, and he may not be able to get to it in the majors. Scouts have lauded his work ethic and leadership skills, so that's a plus.
Others: 6th rounder Kade McClure is a massive, 6'7" right hander out of Louisville, one who has had a solid career for the Cardinals over three years (21-4, 3.21 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 216/69 K/BB). He sits in the low 90's with decent offspeed stuff, so he projects more as a back-end starter or long reliever than an impact guy. 8th rounder Sam Abbott is interesting not only because he was the only high schooler taken by the White Sox in the first 34 rounds, but also because he is one of the best water polo players in the country. At Curtis HS in Washington, he was a three time state MVP and helped the team to two state championship. All I have on him as a baseball player is that he's a power hitting first baseman. 9th rounder Craig Dedelow brings more college power to the field, having slashed .258/.336/.563 with 19 home runs for Indiana this year. 13th rounder Tate Blackman was at the center of Ole Miss' offense this year, slashing .302/.420/.525 with nine home runs to go along with nine stolen bases. There's also 14th rounder Alex Destino, a centerpiece of the South Carolina offense during his career there, and 16th rounder Logan Taylor, the third Louisville Cardinal drafted by the White Sox this year.
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