The 2023 Major League Baseball draft for the Chicago White Sox included gamers spanning the globe from Downers Grove to Pineuilh, France and Osaka, Japan.
The Sox chosen 10 pitchers (seven right-handers and three left-handers), 5 infielders, three outfielders and two catchers.
Sox director of newbie scouting Mike Shirley talked about the “security of some of the skills of some of the guys we drafted on the first day” as a spotlight whereas speaking with reporters in a convention name Tuesday.
Here are three takeaways from the three-day draft.
1. The Sox have been thrilled to get Jacob Gonzalez at No. 15.
Jacob Gonzalez is from Glendora, Calif., and grew up rooting for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Gonzalez mentioned he’s visited Camelback Ranch — the spring coaching residence in Glendale, Ariz., for each the Dodgers and Sox — “my whole life.”
That was his most quick reference to the Sox till Sunday once they chosen the Mississippi shortstop with the No. 15 choose.
“I think Jacob Gonzalez is a real player,” Shirley mentioned. “He does so many great things. You’re talking about a guy who was a Freshman Player of the Year (by D1Baseball) in college, he won a national championship his sophomore year and he’s a first-round draft pick his junior year.”
Gonzalez slashed .319/.427/.561 with 43 doubles, 4 triples, 40 residence runs, 158 RBIs and 186 runs in 186 video games throughout three seasons with the Rebels.
“He’s a left-handed hitter who walks more than he strikes out,” Shirley mentioned. “He gets the power, he’s got plus instincts. I’m excited about what Jacob brings to the table.”
2. Downers Grove North product George Wolkow’s energy stands out.
Downers Grove North High School’s George Wolkow is 6-foot-7. That’s not all that stood out to the Sox.
“The power is unbelievable,” Shirley mentioned. “The power is significant.”
The Sox chosen the outfielder within the seventh spherical on Monday.
“Remember, he’s 17, 6-foot-7, 240 pounds, so his body is still maturing,” Shirley mentioned. “George has important instruments. … You’re speaking a couple of child who’s taking an enormous threat in life, he graduated highschool early and took a major amount of cash from an expert baseball staff to leap in a profession actually fast in his life.
“Sometimes when you think about the makeup of people, the ability to take on risk, manage risk and feel good about it, that says a lot about his character.”
3. Japan and France have been represented within the eleventh and twelfth rounds.
California, Texas, Florida and North Carolina are a couple of of the states the place a number of the Sox picks have their hometowns.
The Sox additionally chosen Oregon second baseman Rikuu Nishida, who’s from Osaka, Japan and Cochise (Ariz.) College right-handed pitcher Mathias LaCombe, who’s from Pineuilh, France.
Nishida set single-season college data at Oregon with 25 stolen bases and 67 runs in 2023.
“You can’t take your eyes off the guy when he’s on the field,” Shirley mentioned. “That alone, and his skill set and his talent, it’s real. We thought it was important enough to take him in the 11th round because I think he’s going to get on base, he’s going to steal bases, he bunts, he slashes, he can hit.”
Nishida earned honorable point out All-Pac-12 Conference honors after batting .312 with 5 residence runs and 37 RBIs.
Shirley additionally pointed to his success within the Cape Cod League, the place he hit .291 with three doubles, 11 RBIs, 25 runs and a league-leading 28 stolen bases in 2022.
“It was significant what he was doing in a wood bat league to give you some validation without the aluminum bat in his hands,” Shirley mentioned.
The Sox chosen Nishida within the eleventh spherical. They picked LaCombe within the twelfth.
“He’s not short on talent, 93-95 (mph) with a real breaking ball,” Shirley mentioned of LaCombe. “This guy is a real piece of the puzzle. The guy has a bunch of energy, he loves to pitch. We think there’s untapped potential here, as well.”
Here’s a breakdown of the Sox alternatives within the 2023 MLB draft:
- Round 1, No. 15 (bonus slot worth $4,488,600): SS Jacob Gonzalez, Mississippi
- Round 2, No. 51: RHP Grant Taylor, LSU
- Round 3, No. 84: RHP Seth Keener, Wake Forest
- Round 4, No. 116: C Calvin Harris, Mississippi
- Round 5, No. 152: LHP Christian Oppor, Gulf Coast (Fla.) CC
- Round 6, No. 179: LHP Lucas Gordon, Texas
- Round 7, No. 209: OF George Wolkow, Downers Grove North HS
- Round 8, No. 239: OF Eddie Park, Stanford
- Round 9, No. 269: RHP Jake Peppers, Jacksonville State
- Round 10, No: 299: RHP Zach Franklin, Missouri
- Round 11, No. 329: 2B Rikuu Nishida, Oregon
- Round 12, No. 359: RHP Mathias LaCombe, Cochise (Ariz.) College
- Round 13, No. 389: 3B Ryan Galanie, Wofford (S.C.) College
- Round 14, No. 419: 2B Edrick Felix, Florida Gulf Coast
- Round 15, No. 449: RHP Carlton Perkins, Cowley County (Kan.) CC
- Round 16, No. 479: C Weston Eberly, Columbia
- Round 17, No. 509: IF Mikey Kane, Oregon State
- Round 18, No. 539: LHP Anthony Imhoff, Pima (Ariz.) CC
- Round 19, No. 569: OF Caden Connor, Cal State Fullerton
- Round 20, No. 599: RHP Garrett Wright, TCU
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Source: www.bostonherald.com