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It’s been so long since the White Sox held the No. 1 overall pick in the draft, nearly every one of our readers were not fans when it last happened (1977, Harold Baines) … even a “veteran” fan like Brett, senior to all but one on the SSS staff, had just begun his fandom at that time.
Well, after months of anticipation, and the curious fall of UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky from no-brainer top pick to perhaps as low as No. 3 overall in the draft, Saturday marks the day of reckoning for the White Sox. The draft boasts as many as three apparent generational talents:
- Cholowsky, a collegiate superstar and right-handed bat apparently close to plugging directly into the White Sox lineup
- Vahn Lackey, a Georgia Tech catcher who the White Sox front office apparently now favors
- Grady Emerson, a prep shortstop out of Fort Worth who is three years younger than the two collegians, bats from the left side, is purportedly as MLB-ready as the other two and is said to be the preference of the White Sox scouting corps
There is no clear pick here, which hopefully means there is no way for the White Sox to make a mistake with the choice. But we all know that these three players won’t end up with identical 20-year, 100-WAR careers and Hall of Fame elections. Chicago’s recent high-pick past is no salve for our worries, as the club picked Nick Madrigal No. 4 overall and Andrew Vaughn No. 3 in back-to back drafts.
So, who’s you’re guy on Saturday?
