Top 3 Draft Pick
With another losing season in 2018, the Sox secured yet another high draft pick for the upcoming MLB First-Year Player Draft in June. This will be the second time the Sox have had the third overall draft pick in the last five years. The Sox having another top three draft pick should help them continue to add depth to their already loaded farm system.
This draft could yield the Sox an impact player on offense with some quality players already being selected by the team in most mock drafts. One player to keep an eye on is catcher Adley Rutschman of Oregon State University. Rutschman was a teammate of Sox 2018 draft pick (4th overall) Nick Madrigal last season when the Beavers won the College World Series.
He could be the first overall draft pick this year according to some mock drafts. Currently, Rutschman is having a strong season for the Beavers. He’s hitting .343 with a .540 on-base percentage, .800 slugging percentage and has five home runs through 35 at-bats. Rutschman very well could be selected with the first overall pick.
If Rutschman is drafted before the Sox make their selection with the third overall pick in this year’s draft, they could look to draft a first baseman. Andrew Vaughn could be available for the Sox and most mock drafts have them taking the junior first baseman from the University of California with the third overall pick.
Through just 10 games, Vaughn owns an impressive .529/.680/1.176 slash line with a 1.856 OPS and seven home runs. If drafted by the Sox, Vaughn could very well become a replacement for Abreu at first base in the future. Vaughn won the Golden Spikes Award as a sophomore last year and his hitting approach has been deemed as advanced.