This draft season has been the most difficult for me to track, keeping a Chicago White Sox point-of-view. I think I’ve got a good hold of who is going in the Top 10, but it seems when I start following a prospect I like, they perform well, and doubts raise if they will even fall to the White Sox at pick 22.
That latest prospect is one I wrote about last week in Miami (OH) RHP flamethrower Sam Bachman. After dealing with arm soreness, Bachman’s workload has steadily increased each week and was downright dominant again last weekend against Western Michigan. Bachman only allowed one hit and an earned run in six innings of work while striking out 11 to just one walk on 70 pitches. D1Baseball’s Burke Granger joined the Sox Machine MLB Draft Show last year, got a chance to see Bachman in action.
A triple-digit fastball paired with a plus-slider combo is why the White Sox took Garrett Crochet 11th overall last year, and I suspect that Bachman could also follow suit. He’s the one pitcher with a lot of helium, and a couple of scouts I’ve spoken to believe Bachman for sure goes in the Top 15.
Bachman moves into my Top 5 Starting Pitchers in this draft class, with Jaden Hill dropping out due to injury.
- Jack Leiter - Vanderbilt
- Kumar Rocker - Vanderbilt
- Ty Madden - Texas
- Gunnar Hoglund - Ole Miss
- Sam Bachman - Miami (OH)
Something to monitor is Kumar Rocker’s velocity. It’s been back-to-back starts in which Rocker’s fastball has dipped, mostly sitting between 91-93 mph. The strikeouts are still piling up for Rocker, who punched out a dozen in his last start against Georgia, but he also allowed six earned runs on seven hits. Tennesse is coming into town this weekend which is a crucial series for both schools in the SEC race. Maybe the rivalry will get Rocker back to his best form, where he sits 94-95 mph.
Keep An Eye on Harry Ford
My pursuit of finding a pool of players for the Chicago White Sox first-round pick continues, and when asking around for some possibilities, Harry Ford’s name has been dropped frequently since February.
Ignore the prep catcher angle for a moment. I like Ford because his athletic ability makes me wonder if he could be moved from behind home plate into the middle infield or a corner outfield position. Looking over the film, there’s plenty of videos to suggest Ford has a pop time around two seconds, which is 50-grade. Ford handles catching duties well for a teenager, but some think his long-term position professionally will not be behind home plate.
It’s Ford’s bat that’s hard to ignore, and the video clips from social media are impressive. I mean, check out this bat flip.
How quick Ford’s hands are what catches my eye, and in a baseball world where pitchers like Sam Bachman are reaching triple digits, that’ll be a key attribute. It’s nice to see power from Ford during his prep season and this past summer’s showcase circuit.
https://twitter.com/kileymcd/status/1370135289654566914?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
The last time a prep catcher stuck at the position and accumulated more than 10 WAR in their career was Joe Mauer. Neil Walker was a prep catcher, but the Pittsburgh Pirates moved him to third base when he reached AA. Tyler Stephenson is off to a good start in 2021 for the Cincinnati Reds, but there’s a significant drought of major league success with this draft demographic. In addition to the scary draft trend, Ford did commit to Georgia Tech, which has done a terrific job of developing catchers. Kevin Parada made this year’s midseason Golden Spikes watchlist as a true Freshman and might follow Joey Bart’s footsteps of being a future Top-10 pick. If Ford went to college, perhaps he could follow in the program’s lineage.
Or a team like the White Sox can offer him millions in a signing bonus and see if Ford can stick behind home plate while working with their recently drafted prep pitchers like Jared Kelley, Andrew Dalquist, and Matthew Thompson. The franchise needs to start developing another wave of prospects for long-term success and give Rick Hahn more trade assets. A prospect like Ford provides a team with a lot to dream about. It’s been a while since the White Sox spent their first-round pick on a prep player (Courtney Hawkins, 2012). In a draft class that sees flawed college prospects stock dropping, and not many second-round grades elevating their profiles, 2021 might be the year to go prep at pick 22. Harry Ford would be a good option for them.
Games I’m Watching This Weekend
Vanderbilt vs. Tennessee: I’m not sure how the Volunteers are playing this well since Garrett Crochet has left, but they have added some serious pressure on the Vandy Boys. Ole Miss and Arkansas was a blast to watch last weekend, and I’m hoping for more of the same in this weekend’s SEC matchup.
Youngstown State vs. Northern Kentucky: Why am I watching this Horizon League matchup? I’m checking out LHP Collin Floyd, who, according to D1Baseball when considering Zone Control, Pitch Ability, and Durability, is the second-best pitcher in this draft class behind Jack Leiter. I’d like to see why.
