Drafts work perfectly for teams when need and value match up to make one name stand out above all others when their time on the clock comes. And although no draft is as unpredictable as the MLB draft — with every 1st rounder seemingly possessing equal potential for stardom or bustdom — White Sox fans have to be, at a minimum, pleasantly intrigued by the teams’ first round selection.
About an hour ago, in the first round of the 2009 MLB draft, the Chicago White Sox selected LSU 2-sport star CF/WR Jared Mitchell with their first round selection, #23 overall.
As the current White Sox continue to muddle through a disappointing June homestand that was supposed to put us on a path back toward the top of the AL Central, not the bottom, I will just say this: Jared Mitchell may never get past AA, but the thought of his potential — and the daydream of a real center fielder roaming the outfield grass on the South Side once again — has me smiling.
11 years later, the White Sox may have finally found a replacement for Mike Cameron.
(I know, I know. To be more apt I should say Aaron Rowand, who was tremendous in 2005 and who I miss a ton, as do the White Sox; but I always thought he had kind of a fruity batting stance and was more grit than grace — equal, if not better overall, than Cameron as a player, but not nearly as exciting.)
So who is Jared Mitchell and what are some quick-hit reasons why White Sox fans should be excited about him?
- Not only does he play CF for LSU, but he also plays WR for the SEC-power Tigers. So I think we can safely assume that he has pretty awesome athletic ability.
- Or, we can forget about assuming, and remember that when the Twins drafted Jared Mitchell in the 10th round back in 2006, he was widely viewed as the most athletic player in th
at draft. Something tells me that his athletic ability has only become more pronounced after three years playing top-level college baseball and football. - He was drafted with the 23rd pick. If I’m not mistaken, I’m pretty sure the city of Chicago has had solid luck with dynamic athletes who were associated with the number 23. To borrow a phrase from The TMR, just sayin’…
- He has helped lead LSU to a #3 seed in the 2009 College World Series.
- In 203 ABs this season, Jared Mitchell has a .325 batting average that was improved by a strong late season surge when his team needed him the most.
- More impressively, he led a solid LSU offense with 52 walks on the season, leading to a team-best .471 on-base percentage, proving that unlike the free-swinging Cameron he might actually have some discipline at the plate. (What he may not have, however, is Cameron’s power, although Mitchell did hit 9 homers on the year and slugged an impressive .557. And like Cameron, Mitchell does strike out a lot, as he has totaled 61 on the year. So about that plate discipline…)
- Jared Mitchell also stole 35 bases in 44 attempts.
But as we know, teams do not necessarily draft on stats on high school/college production in the baseball draft. They choose on the basis of tools and potential. Here is what a few of the experts are saying about Jared Mitchell:
Jason Churchill, ESPN: Mitchell, a two-sport star at LSU, has one nick in his armor — strikeouts. Good athlete with plus speed and some power, draw walks and may be able to play center. has arm for right field and his focus on baseball now should help his development.
Jared Mitchell Player Card, ESPN: Mitchell can run and throw and has raw bat speed, all of which make him an appealing prospect even considering his age. His problem is at the plate, where his swing is long and his trigger — a toe tap and big stride that closes his stance — comes very late. When he squares something up, it takes off, but the squaring-up frequency isn’t high enough and his pitch recognition isn’t advanced enough yet to overcome the problems in his swing.
Kevin Goldstein, Baseball Prospectus: Mitchell is loaded with that kind of dynamism. His performances have been mixed, but he has a good approach at the plate and leads the Tigers with 33 walks, and he has outstanding speed and plenty of power potential, making up for a sub-standard batting average with an impressive line of .310/.470/.595. His projection alone could move him into the first half of the first round according to one scouting director, who added, “you watch him play, and you get the feeling that he’s really just beginning to scratch the surface of what he can do.”
More Kevin Goldstein, via South Side Sox: In A Perfect World He Becomes: He has true impact potential, but comes with a fair share of risk.
White Sox scouting director Doug Laumann via the Tribune: “One of the things we tried to accomplish in this draft was to find a high-ceiling, athletic-type of player,” Laumann said. “We certainly weren’t going to sacrifice the ability of some guys just to get that. But as it turned out, he was the one guy who the best player on the board and who we were exactly looking for.”
And in the final Baseball Prospectus draft rankings by Goldstein, he had Jared Mitchell rated as the #1 college hitter. I’d say that’s a pretty solid endorsement.
Once again, I will reiterate, there is probably an equal chance that Jared Mitchell becomes a Major League star, or a serviceable 4th outfielder, or never gets past AA. You just never know. From the scouting reports it sounds like Mitchell is a very talented but raw player. For example, Jared Mitchell clearly has speed and cover ground in the outfield, although he purportedly does not have great instincts. Mitchell also appears to struggle somewhat to make contact, but yet is able to compensate for a high K rate by drawing walks and taking advantage of his speed on the basepaths.
While there is no guarantee of Jared Mitchell ever roaming centerfield on a consistent basis for the White Sox, there certainly appears to be enough talent and production in his track record to get a little bit excited. And one thing that everyone seems to like about Mitchell is that much of his talent is undeveloped. We all know how much time and preparation goes into playing football at the college level, especially in the SEC. Most analysts seem to think that Mitchell’s development will rapidly advance one he focuses his full attention on baseball.
Let’s hope so. Even though that White Sox have had solid players like Mike Cameron and Aaron Rowand in center for brief stints over the past 12 years, whenever I think of centerfield for the Sox I tend to focus more on the struggles of Dewayne Wise, Brian Anderson, McKay Christenson (remember him?), and others who had no business being starters on a contending club. At least for tonight, Jared Mitchell offers a glimmer of hope similar to what KVB just texted me: “Good. Maybe we will shore up our CF problems by 2011.”
And that will be important for White Sox fans to keep in mind. Even though both Gordon Beckham and Jared Mitchell were college players, there appears to be no comparison between their immediate Major League readiness upon being drafted. Beckham was drafted last season and I remember people saying that he was developed and mature enough to be promoted to the big league club immediately. Then he almost made the team out of Spring Training this year, and is now on the South Side here at the start of June. Mitchell, however, appears to be a good 2-3 years away from even thinking about the bigs, so excitement should be tempered for any type of Beckham-like ascent into Oz
zie’s lineup.
And even the great Gordon Beckham may not have quite been ready for prime time, as he did not get his first hit until his 14th at-bat.
Regardless, Jared Mitchell is the type of high ceiling, potential impact player that solid farm systems and memorable drafts are built upon. And as SI.com chronicled earlier today, the draft has not exactly been the most shining example of the White Sox solid overall decade as a franchise.
But tonight we forget about all of the past draft failures by the White Sox and ignore the very real possibility that Jared Mitchell may never turn out to be a great player. Rather, we can all revel in the sports fans’ most indulgent and satisfying of delicacies: the omnipotent power of promise and potential on draft day.
For at least tonight, we can all enjoy the promise and potential of Jared Mitchell.
And then starting tomorrow, let’s just hope he and the White Sox can turn that promise and potential into the most important “p” of all: production at the Major League level.
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