Organizational Talent Rankings via Baseball America
2012 (30) | 2011 (27) | 2010 (23) | 2009 (16) | 2008 (30)

2012 Affiliate Records
MLB:  [85-77] AL Central
AAA:  [83-61] International League — Charlotte
AA:  [63-76] Southern League — Birmingham
A+:  [87-51] Carolina League — Winston-Salem
A:  [61-78] South Atlantic League — Kannapolis

Arizona Fall League Players — Salt River Rafters
Andre Rienzo (RHP); Santos Rodriguez (LHP); Salvador Sanchez (RHP); Taylor Thompson (RHP); Carlos Sanchez (2B); Andy Wilkins (1B); Trayce Thompson (OF)

Graduated Prospects of Note
Addison Reed (RHP); Jose Quintana (RHP); Hector Santiago (LHP)

The Run Down
The MLB Divisional Series are still raging and, for most, it’s a little early to start digging into 2013 previews of any sort.  Alas, we have a schedule to maintain here.  As usual, we’ll ease you into these team-by-team minor league previews, starting from the bottom, and working our way toward the more compelling organizations as we approach Opening Day 2013.  So, here we are in the cellar:  the Chicago White Sox.  And believe me, it doesn’t get any lower than this.  Perhaps, though, it’s unfair to bash the Sox for their lousy farm system.  Owner Jerry Reinsdorf and President Kenny Williams have consistently approached their organization from a MLB-first perspective — they don’t spend much in drafts and their player development systems are lagging.  But the White Sox aren’t ignorant to these flaws; they just don’t care.  They’re a principled franchise, and they’re reasonably successful in what they do and how they do it.  Frankly, I don’t endorse this baseball operations model — it kinda goes without saying that I’m a prospecty, build-from-within sort of dude.  But while I watch other organizations tiptoe the line between development-first and MLB-first organizational philosophies, I must admit that it’s refreshing to see Sox standing their ground, flippin’ the bird to all the Keith Laws out there.