White Sox Round 5 selection: LHP Bailey Horn
The White Sox went pitcher, somebody who pitches, a position player who is a pitcher, and well, another pitcher in the first four rounds. This time, in Round 5, the Sox went with another pitcher: Bailey Horn out of Auburn.
Now, after the first two selections, it seems like the front office went with players who will not make the full bonus amount. This may seem a little strange since it was only a five-round draft, but this is what the Sox more or less did in 2019. Their first three selections (Andrew Vaughn, Matthew Thompson, and Andrew Dalquist) were at slot or over and the fourth-rounder (James Beard) was under slot but not at a point where it was viewed as punting the pick. From Rounds 5-10 last season, which are the picks that factor into the bonus pool amount, the Sox only gave a a $10,000 bonus to each player. So punting halfway through the bonus portion of the draft is not a new thing for this team. However, punting when not having picks after the punt is new, and a lot of kids are not going to benefit.
FanGraphs: 172
MLB Pipeline: Unranked
ESPN: Unranked
Baseball America: 314
Horn is ranked in a couple of the major baseball draft sites. FanGraphs has him topping out at 96 mph with his fastball and they note his curve, which has "depth," and a "sweepier" slider.
Baseball America notes many of the same traits as FanGraphs, but they do provide a better notation of his fastball velo, at 90-94 mph. Unlike FanGraphs, it seems like BA does enjoy his changeup.
Horn has had TJ surgery in the past.
Horn started his collegiate career at McLennan Community college, where he was a starter in 16 of his 18 appearances.
When he arrived in Auburn, however, he turned to the bullpen, and was not very good. In 34 ⅓ innings he had a 6.03 ERA with too many walks (17) and not enough strikeouts (28).
It looked like 2020 was going to be his breakout season, but then there was, and still is, a pandemic. In 2020, he became a starter (four games) and was much better. Before play stopped, Horn had a 2.08 ERA in 17 ⅓ innings. His walks were better (five) and the strikeouts were very good (27). He seemed like he was on the rise, and even though Horn has a year of eligibility left, he should sign.
And he can dunk!