2017 Draft Review: Chicago White Sox

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.

2017 Draft Demographics: Catchers

First Tier: Nobody
Second Tier: Luis Campusano, M.J. Melendez, Riley Adams, Evan Skoug
Third Tier: Connor Wong, Matt Whatley, Daulton Varsho, Blake Hunt, Joey Morgan
Others: Sam McMillan, Zach Jackson, Chris Williams

Catching is typically difficult to come by at the college level. This year in particular, there's almost none of it. None likely even have a chance of going in the first round, unless they sign an underslot, and it might be the biggest weakness of the draft class. That said, here are the best of what we have. Some of them have been profiled in other demographics, and will be profiled again.

Tier I
As I said, there are no top tier catchers. Each one comes with their own significant risks.

Tier II (Campusano, Melendez, Adams, Skoug)
Two high schoolers, Luis Campusano and M.J. Melendez, lead the pack. Both are solid defenders with their own issues, both have a lot of power projection, and both have a lot of swing and miss in their games. Their outlooks and potential risk/rewards are actually so similar that I have them ranked right next to each other in my top 100. That said, they are in fact different players, with different swings and different defensive holes in their game. Campusano, who got himself into excellent shape this season, generates power through his strength and a clean swing that he is constantly tweaking, and I along with others believe there is more to come. Meanwhile, Melendez gets his power from a rotation swing in which he whips his energy from his lower half up through his torso and arms, thereby whipping the bat through the zone with great speed and force. Campusano has a much thicker build, but Melendez is more agile and can use what he has more efficiently, giving them roughly equal outlooks on power. Both have question marks about future contact, Campusano more because of a simple lack of being acclimated to high-level arms, and Melendez because of the significant bat wrap he has before his swing, as well as the length and nature of the swing itself. Again, though they have different reasons for their swing and miss, the net sum is about equal. On defense, Melendez gets the slight edge because he is better at blocking balls and moving around behind the plate. That said, Campusano isn't bad at that either, and they both have excellent arm strength. If you like the upside of a Joe Mauer type catcher, Melendez is your guy, while if you like the more traditionally stocky and durable Russell Martin mold, go with Campusano. At the college level, Riley Adams and Evan Skoug are so different that they aren't worth comparing. Adams, out of the University of San Diego, gets frequent comparisons to fellow former Torero Kris Bryant, though more because of his mechanics than because of his offensive outlook. He lacks a standout tool, but he can barrel baseballs up and can be a serviceable defender. Overall, it looks like a backup catcher profile, but it's a safer bet than Campusano or Melendez due to his career .305/.411/.504 line in San Diego's conference, the WCC. Evan Skoug, as profiled in the power bats demographic, has the best present pop of any player on this list, but his huge strikeout issues make him a risky pick, even for a college player. Another negative is that he has a decent chance of being forced to move to first base, as he is not on the defensive caliber of Adams, but a positive would be his strong work ethic and leadership skills. He is reportedly working extremely hard to hone his defensive skills and remain a catcher. Basically, nothing about him his neutral; scouts love his power and work ethic, but hate his strikeouts and aren't satisfied with his defense.

Tier III (Wong, Whatley, Varsho, Hunt, Morgan)
Connor Wong, as I stated in the last post, is only a catcher because he ended up behind a plate and realized he was pretty good. He's an above average runner, not just for a catcher but for any type of player, giving him a very unique profile. As a speedster with all around decent hitting abilities, he could end up in the Austin Barnes mold in which he splits time behind the plate and in the infield. Two players in less competitive conferences, Oral Roberts' Matt Whatley and UW-Milwaukee's Daulton Varsho, have played each other about even this season. Whatley slashed .302/.446/.509 with 11 home runs in the Summit League despite playing better in his sophomore season, while Varsho finished at .362/.490/.643 in the Horizon League. Both have thunder in their bats, generating plus power, but Varsho's overall better contact ability make him the better hitter, in my opinion. However, Whatley is the best defensive college catcher with a chance to go in the top 100 picks. Varsho, meanwhile, is nearly as good with the glove, but lags behind not only Whatley but most of the class with his below average arm. Both project to go somewhere in the third or fourth round, and who goes first is anybody's call. Blake Hunt is the only high school catcher in this tier (though Sam McMillan narrowly missed), with upside as high as Campusano or Melendez but more risk. He has a lot of mechanical issues in his swing, but they shouldn't be too difficult to fix and he could be an above average hitter. His calling card is his defense, which is the best among high school catchers. Overall, he's a less advanced Matt Whatley. Lastly, Joey Morgan joined Wong in the last post, as he projects as pretty average across the board. He should be able to stick behind home plate, and he should hit enough to be a backup, but nothing really jumps off the page with him. He's a breakout guy this year, so those that value trajectory would be inclined to take him before Whatley, who slumped this year.