White Sox farm System Not So Bad After All

During the offseason leading up to this year, the White Sox farm system was labeled as “historically bad.” While for the die hard fans of the organization this came as no shock, the drastic nature to the statement does get you thinking.
Is the Sox’ system really that bad? Will it be a detriment to the team in the near and even far ahead future? Or is this just another story being blown out of proportion by the media? Most would have said yes back in the winter, but now some opinions have changed.
What have we produced?
Pitching: Let’s take a look at the current team to see what the Sox’ farm system has produced. Starting with the pitching staff, you’ve got Chris Sale, Addison Reed, Nate Jones, and Hector Santiago as the big contributors that were brought up entirely through the organization’s system. So sure, it seems like the minor league squads of recent years haven’t produced much. However this takes us in to the first main point of this post, to shed light on the youngsters that the system did not technically produce, but should be given credit for.

When you say that a guy is a product of a certain team, it means that they drafted or signed the player originally and developed him entirely within their organization before heading to the big league club. However, this leaves out a lot of guys that I still consider products of the organization.
There are a lot pitchers that were not originally signed or drafted by the Sox, but were spotted and given a flyer by the team when they had not been given that shot or had failed with other clubs.
The guys that fall in to this category are Jose Quintana (acquired as a low-level prospect from the Yankees), John Danks (acquired as a minor leaguer for Brandon McCarthy at the height of his hype), Gavin Floyd (acquired as a back-end of the rotation guy from the Phillies), Phil Humber (picked up as a “bust” of a high draft pick from the Mets & Royals), and Matt Thornton (acquired in trade from Seattle after never having success) among other rookies that may contribute in large roles for the team in the immediate future.
Most of these guys were no-names or busts that their respective teams had given up on. So, you have to credit the likes of Buddy Bell, Don Cooper, Juan Nieves, and many more developmental scout-guys for seeing talent and being able to capitalizing on it. When you see so many names in that category, you know it’s not a coincidence.
Offense: As far as hitters go, Gordon Beckham, Alexei Ramirez, Brent Morel, Dayan Viciedo, Jordan Danks, and Eduardo Escobar all came up solely through the Sox’ system (excluding Cuba). And like with the pitchers, there are more. Alejandro De Aza, who has been phenomenal for his entire time with the organization, was given up on by the Marlins before having his career turned around by the Sox. Heck, even Paul Konerko was just a youngin’ without too high of a ceiling until he came over from the Dodgers.
There are even more names like Mark Buehrle, Carlos Lee, and Magglio Ordonez, but it’s not necessary to get too deep into them since the previous names mentioned should serve as more than sufficient.
Obviously, the point I’m getting at is that the Sox may not have that many big-time prospects coming up through their system from rookie ball to the big leagues, but does that really matter? I mean, I’ve heard a lot of people say that the Sox should not get credit for the likes of Alejandro De Aza and the success he’s now having on the south side of Chicago. That’s an argument that I just do not understand. He was a high-end prospect that had suffered multiple serious injuries and had been written off as “done.” The Sox developmental guys spotted him and said “well, if he can stay healthy, there’s no reason he can’t perform like everyone used to think he could.”
My other favorite example is John Danks, who was traded to the Sox in addition to a couple of other prospects for Brandon McCarthy, who many thought was the future ace of the staff. Nobody fully understood why you’d trade him for three low to mid-level prospects. But like many other times that I’ve mentioned, John Danks has turned out to be a good one. I was at his first start as a pro against the Minnesota Twins, and while he took the loss, only had one blemish throughout the game: a 3R-HR from Justin Morneau. Right then and there, I thought “hmmm, is this a Buehrle-like guy?”
Just a few years later, I’m asking the same question about Jose Quintana, who has been magnificent throughout his first couple months with the team, emassing a 2.04 ERA.
What does all of this mean?
So while we can all agree that this is a pattern, some people would still argue that it doesn’t mean their system is any “better.” But all I have to say to that is “Come on!” Why didn’t another team scoop up Jose Quintana, Alejandro De Aza, Phil Humber, and so forth?
Well of course, their argument is that whenever you look at the Sox’ minor league teams, they’re just not that good. These critics feel that while surprises like Quintana sure are nice, you can’t rely on them every year. And I’ll be honest, that’s a perfectly valid argument. But is the farm system really that thin? Are there really no more than a couple of prospects to get excited about? I don’t think so.
To keep it simple, here’s what you’ve got: The Sox are deep in the outfield. The major league team has three guys in place now that could be there for upcoming seasons, but the Sox have the likes of Jared Mitchell, Jordan Danks, Keenyn Walker, Courtney Hawkins, and Trayce Thompson all waiting in the wings despite there not being any sure-fire spots open. And don’t be mistaken, those are all big time prospects.

They’re not deep in the infield, but the middle of the infield sured up for years to come with Beckham and Alexei, and the corner infield spots aren’t something to get too worried about yet. And the infield was addressed in the recent draft with the likes of  Keon Barnum and Joey DeMichele, among others.
The bullpen should actually be in very good shape for the forseeable future, since Addison Reed, Nate Jones, Leyson Septimo, and Hector Santiago could be around for a while. Not to mention the other arms, like Duente Heath and others that they’ve called up. There’s a lot of good arms in the AAA and AA bullpens, so like the outfield, the bullpen of the future doesn’t worry me.
Finally, you’ve got the starting rotation, which I always feel is the most important aspect to a ball club. Going forward, Chris Sale will be the top guy for years to come, John Danks is under contract, Jose Quintana could certainly be around a while, and money will be freed up after this season with the bucks that have been going to Jake Peavy, dollars that I feel will probably go to another starter, whether it’s in a restructured deal for Peavy or a free agent. So in my opinion, there’s only one spot that will likely be in the next year or two.
Now obviously, that’s a pretty in depth look into the White Sox of the future. Considering the team is currently in first place, it isn’t something we should even be worrying about. But I know it’s gotten a lot of attention, so I just wanted to shed some light on the fact that the White Sox farm system is not nearly as bad as it’s been labeled. I mean,  I can’t name many other teams that have brought up as many big-time contributors in one year as the Sox have this year (Viciedo, Quintana, Sale, De Aza, Jones, Reed, Santiago).

If you check out GrabSomeBench.com often and follow @Grab_Some_Bench on Twitter, you know I like to rant about the Sox. I’m well aware that a lot of the time those rants are just fueled by emotions, considering the amount of emotions I invest in the White Sox daily. But this time I’m certain when I say that the media is wrong and it’s merely a classic example of a small problem, if that, being blown way out of proportion.

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Post by Grab Some Bench! Founder and Managing Editor, Zach Gropper. Go, Go White Sox!