Why the Chicago White Sox should select this prospect over Jac Caglianone
Jac Caglianone is a tremendously talented prospect, but playing first base and probably taking all the allotted money in the draft slot does not make him an ideal choice.
A lot of mock drafts are leaning heavily toward the Chicago White Sox taking Florida Gators slugger Jac Caglianone with the No. 5 overall pick in the first round of tomorrow night's MLB Draft.
Caglianone is an impressive prospect who can hit the ball a country mile. The youngster crushed 33 home runs in 2023 and followed that up with 35 dingers in 2024. While he did that with an aluminum bat, he still took SEC pitching yard a lot, and that is impressive.
He is MLB Pipeline's third-best draft prospect who can pitch, but most scouts think he is not going to have a Shohei Ohtani-like impact on the mound. That is why the belief is he will transition to the field, so teams can take advantage of his power left-handed bat.
There are a lot of mocks pointing to him dropping to No. 5.
John Doyle of FutureStarSeries.com, Dan Zielinski III of the Baseball Prospect Journal, and Carlos Collazo of Baseball America all think the Sox are taking Caglianone.
Here is the thing with baseball mock drafts, they can be more accurate than say the NFL or NBA as MLB contracts for these prospects are already being negotiated. So if there are folks catching wind of the four teams ahead of the Sox going in a different direction and the Sox already have hosted Caglianone for a visit, it is pretty safe to assume that there is a good chance that is where the Sox front office is headed in.
Again, Caglianone is an impressive prospect and the Sox need power bats in their system. Plus, being a college hitter gives him a greater chance to get to the big leagues sooner.
There is a problem with drafting Caglianone and it is pretty straightforward--he plays first base.
You can find a power-hitting first baseman pretty easily these days. Drafting a first baseman that high in the draft is like drafting a running back in the NFL that high. You can probably find a masher of first baseman later in the draft or in the international free-agent market.
It is just not a good process.
Before you argue who cares about process, realize one of the many reasons the Sox are historically bad right now is because the previous front office leadership team had a terrible player selection process.
Think about how the rebuild last decade washed out. They took a high-floor, hardly any ceiling prospect in Nick Madrigal and then you should be reminded Andrew Vaughn also raked in college and has been nothing more than a replacement-level player.
First basemen also do not provide any defensive value. The main defensive goal at first base is to catch the ball and make a scoop catch if need be. There is no real need for athleticism and if the player busts at the simple defensive prerequisites of the job, there are not many places to put that player except DH.
The Sox have to hit on this pick as they will not be selecting in the top nine next season no matter how historically bad the record they finish with is. The Sox must leave with a foundational player and in today's game, first base is no longer a foundational position.
Catcher, pitcher, shortstop, and centerfielder are the foundation of any good franchise. The athletic profile and positional versatility of catcher, shortstop, and centerfielder allow a better chance to get value out of a player both offensively and defensively. Adding pitching is pretty self-explanatory.
The White Sox would be better served maximizing their draft pick by taking prep shortstop/outfielder Konnor Griffin.
He is the other player that has been connected to the Sox at No. 5 a lot. FutureSox thinks the Sox should take him along with Kiley McDaniel of ESPN (a subscription is required to access).
Griffin is considered the top prep prospect according to MLB Pipeline. He mashes the ball, runs like a deer, and fields well. He also won the National Gatorade High School Player of the Year this year.
Plus, he is 18 and can be molded into a superstar. While that might not satisfy ownership with how long it might take for him to get to the big leagues, it is drafting a better athlete with the ability to impact the game both at the plate and on the field.
One of the favorites for the #WhiteSox pick is Mississippi prep star Konnor Griffin. Could he still be the choice at #5? @Sleepy_Harold_ has the profile here: https://t.co/xPF3ont6ac
— FutureSox (@FutureSox) July 13, 2024
The Sox have selected Colson Montgomery and Jacob Gonzalez in the first round under Mike Shirley who runs the draft. Drafting another shortstop prospect should be a continued trend.
Plus, going prep gives Shirley cover in case Montgomery is nothing more than Paul DeJong 2.0 (i.e., someone who can hit the ball with power but not much else) and Gonzalez ends up finally solving the eternal issue of trying to replace Ray Durham at second base (he has a floor to be a solid player)
If you follow the NFL or NBA drafts, you might think this is a reach. In baseball, it is all about getting the best possible player at the lowest price so leftover money can be used to sign other players in later rounds with upside who fell to later rounds because of cost.
Money drives the draft since the MLB Draft since it is so hard to make it to the majors. A guy can rake in college, but injuries or not being able to hit even Triple-A pitching can derail a career.
Joe Borchard was a hitting machine at Stanford and the Sox took him with the 12th pick in 2000. Everyone heard about how hard he could hit the ball and he did crush one of the longest homers in Guaranteed Rate Field history. The problem was he rarely could make contact with the ball and washed out.
It is better to go with upside and athleticism than a guy who can hit the ball very far.
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