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White Sox have cause for optimism 10/01/2007 9:00 AM ET By Kevin T. Czerwinski / MLB.com Before the 2007 season began, MLB.com took an in-depth look at every big league team's Minor League system. Now, it's time to recap all 30 organizations, from top prospects to the recent draft class. More organizational reviews ¬ Arizona Diamondbacks Atlanta Braves Baltimore Orioles Boston Red Sox Chicago Cubs Chicago White Sox Cincinnati Reds Cleveland Indians Colorado Rockies Detroit Tigers Florida Marlins Houston Astros Kansas City Royals Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim Los Angeles Dodgers Milwaukee Brewers Minnesota Twins New York Mets New York Yankees Oakland Athletics Philadelphia Phillies Pittsburgh Pirates San Diego Padres San Francisco Giants Seattle Mariners St. Louis Cardinals Tampa Bay Rays Texas Rangers Toronto Blue Jays Washington Nationals So much more has come to be expected of the White Sox since they won the World Series and not just on the Major League level. Getting the kind of attention that comes with walking away with the ultimate piece of October hardware leaves an organization open to some scrutiny, which doesn't necessarily have to be bad. Chicago has done some nice things with its farm since, some of which was a result of the top end of this year's draft. While the Sox don't have a system like Boston's or Arizona's or the Dodgers, they aren't the Mets either. So, here's a look back on the year that was, with some interesting highlights, and a lowlight or two as well, into the underbelly of the Chicago organization. Organizational Players of the Year PRESEASON PREDICTIONS John Shelby, 2B: Well, one and a half out of two isn't bad, is it? Let's start with the one. The prediction here was that John Shelby would turn out to be the organizational player of the year. And he came pretty close, hitting .301 with 19 homers and 71 RBIs for Class A Kannapolis. He was very consistent throughout much of the season, but over the last month played at a level that the Sox are hoping to see more of from him in the future. He hit .361 in August with 10 homers and 37 RBIs, along with a slugging percentage of .714 and an OPS of 1.098. While it's unrealistic to expect him to hit at that clip all season, there's no reason he can't be a 20-homer, 90-RBI player at every level. Gio Gonzalez, LHP: As for the half, the prediction was that Gio Gonzalez would be the organization's pitcher of the year. He was returning to the Sox after a brief exile in Philadelphia and would be in his second Double-A season. While he did okay, his 9-7 record with a 3.18 ERA (fourth-best in the organization) in 27 starts for Double-A Birmingham was a bit pedestrian considering he'd already spent a year at this level and he was returning to the comfort of his first organization. While Gonzalez made the Southern League All-Star team, the thought was he would be in Triple-A at some point this year. But he just turned 22 in September, so there's plenty of time. POSTSEASON SELECTIONS As chosen by the author, not the organization Chris Carter, 1B: Although Shelby had the second-highest batting average among full-season Chicago farmhands (Jason Bourgeois hit .306 at Triple-A Charlotte), Chris Carter did everything he was supposed to this season and gets the player of the year kudos from this party. The 20-year-old slugger hit .291 at Kannapolis, led the organization with 25 homers and tied teammate Brandon Allen for tops with 93 RBIs. What was more impressive was the fact that Carter began to show some of the plate discipline the team had hoped to see. He struck out every 3.4 at-bats in 2006, but saw that average improve to a whiff every 4.1 at-bats this year. Carter drew 67 walks and despite playing in a full-season environment for the first time, remained consistent in the second half of the year, hitting .276 after the break. Audio: Carter goes yard Audio: Carter goes 5-for-5 Fautino De Los Santos, RHP: While Gonzalez was in the running for pitcher of the year, the nod goes to Fautino De Los Santos. The 20-year-old Dominican's first season in the Minor Leagues was clearly a success as he went 10-5 with a 2.65 ERA at Kannapolis and Class A Advanced Winston-Salem of the Carolina League. He appeared in 26 games (20 starts) while striking out 153 in 122 1/3 innings. He had an 0.92 WHIP and held the opposition to a .163 batting average. Audio: De Los Santos fans Holmberg Climbed the Ladder Josh Fields, 3B: Well, we said that Fields had nothing left to prove in Charlotte and that all he would have to exercise is some patience and that proved to be the case. The former Oklahoma State quarterback got the call from the parent club early in the season and responded by having a marvelous rookie year. Though his batting average was a tad lower than some expected and his strikeout total a tad too high, Fields showed the kind of power and run production that is a expected of a corner infielder in only two-thirds of a season with the Sox. Audio: Fields' game-winning blast Jack Egbert, RHP: The former 13th-round pick continued a slow and steady climb up through the system while going 12-8 with a 3.06 ERA in 28 starts for Birmingham. He even went without a decision in his last four starts, despite allowing only one earned run in three of those outings. He tied for second in the league in victories, was second to Gonzalez with 165 strikeouts and was third in ERA and innings pitched (161 2/3). Audio: Egbert gets 12th strikeout John Shelby, IF: He's been a player to watch since he was drafted and didn't disappoint this season. Shelby's big finish was more of an indication of his talent level than the average numbers he put up during the rest of the season. The month of August he enjoyed should keep him moving up this ladder, through Winston-Salem and into Birmingham next season. Audio: Shelby's grand slam Kept Their Footing Lance Broadway, RHP:: Broadway spent the season in the International League and had a bumpy ride at times, finishing with an 8-9 mark and 4.65 ERA. He was 7-6 with a 3.83 ERA heading into the final three weeks of the season, but went 1-3 with a 10.61 ERA in his final four starts. The only bright spot in that stretch was eight innings of shutout ball against eventual IL champion Richmond on Aug. 26. The opposition hit .264 against him with 17 homers and his strikeout-to-walk ratio (108-78) was not overwhelming. He got called up to the big leagues in September and had a favorable few weeks with the parent club. Ryan Sweeney, OF: Sweeney's numbers (.270, 10 homers, 47 RBIs) weren't nearly as impressive as they were in '06, when he was busy leading Charlotte to a berth in the IL playoffs. Sure, he spent a significant portion of time in Chicago watching and learning after being called up to replace an injured Jim Thome on the roster. While he was in Charlotte, though, he never seemed to get untracked, particularly in the second half. He hit .241 in 37 games in the second half, but will get the chance to show team brass something when he plays in the Arizona Fall League. Audio: Sweeney's slam Chris Getz, IF: Getz was on his way to having a nice bounce-back season at Birmingham. He was hitting .348 in May when an ankle injury landed him on the disabled list for nearly three months. Still, he hit .299 overall after making a big impression last winter -- he spent much of the offseason working out in Arizona -- and appears to have regained his status as someone to watch after a sub-par 2006. He'll be in Charlotte next year -- he's also playing in the AFL this month -- and may even get a look from the parent club as a bench player or emergency callup if he continues to display the scrappiness he rediscovered this year. Audio: Getz leads off with a blast Slipped a Rung Kyle McCulloch, RHP: McCulloch certainly looked impressive with Winston-Salem, at one point winning four consecutive starts through the end of June. But he went 0-2 in his last six starts at Winston-Salem, posting a 5.60 ERA in 27 1/3 innings. Still, he got promoted to Birmingham and fared no better, going 1-2 with a 6.41 ERA in six starts. The Southern League hitters batted .333 against him. He finished the season by going 1-4 in his final 12 starts combined, posting a combined ERA of 6.00. He won only one game after June 27. Paolo Orlando, OF: The former star of the Brazilian national track team had an opportunity to use his speed to shoot through the system. It didn't quite work out that way, though. After stealing 29 bases at Kannapolis in 2006, he returned to the Sally League this season and stole only 20 bases. In addition, his walk total -- a dreadful 18 a year ago -- improved only to 19 this season while his already suspect on-base percentage became more problematic, dropping from .305 to .294. His batting average also dropped nine points to .253. On the Radar Oneli Perez, RHP: He spent the entire season at Double-A Birmingham and firmly planted himself in the picture as one of the organization's late-inning specialists. He was 6-2 with a 2.10 ERA and 16 saves in 59 games for the Barons. His ERA after the eighth inning was 1.94 while the opposition hit only .213. He was most effective after the All-Star break, striking out 46 and walking only four in 27 1/3 second-half innings. Audio: Perez notches save Johnny Lujan, RHP: The Sox acquired Lujan in a deal that sent catcher Chris Stewart to Texas. Though Lujan had unimpressive numbers in 2006 (1-4, 5.74 ERA), the folks in Chicago attributed much of that to the fact he was pitching in The California League. The sinker-baller showed considerable promise this year in the Carolina League, saving 11 games and posting a 3.73 ERA in 82 innings. He had a 3.11 ERA over his last 16 outings and allowed only one homer after July 11. Audio: Lujan en route to save 2007 Draft Recap 1. Aaron Poreda, LHP: The University of San Francisco product couldn't have asked for a better debut season. He went 4-0 with a 1.17 ERA in 12 games (eight starts) for Great Falls of the Pioneer League. He won four of his last five starts while his ERA as a starter was 0.94 in 38 1/3 innings. Poreda has a mid-90s fastball and used it effectively, striking out 48 in 46 1/3 innings. Audio: Poreda gets seventh K 2. Nevin Griffith, RHP: The Florida prep star only pitched 8 2/3 innings for Bristol of the Appalachian League, posting a 5.19 ERA. He struck out seven, but walked six and allowed 14 hits, quickly learning that he wasn't in high school any more. 3. John Ely, RHP: The former Miami of Ohio hurler also went to Great Falls and though he didn't have as much success as Poreda, he was clearly effective. Ely was 6-1 in 13 games (12 starts), posting a 3.86 ERA. He allowed three earned runs or fewer in all but two of his starts, finding his niche over his final four starts (a 1.35 ERA in 20 innings). Audio: Ely gets career-high eighth K Others of Note: RHP Leroy Hunt (Sacramento CC) also contributed at Great Falls, going 2-0 with a 3.82 ERA in 14 games. ... OF Kenny Gilbert (ninth-round, DeSoto High, TX) struggled in Bristol, hitting .203 with 32 strikeouts in 74 at-bats. ... Eighth-rounder Lyndon Estill (Lower Columbia CC, WA) hit. 247 with seven homers and 38 RBIs in 186 at-bats for Great Falls. ... Sixth-rounder John Lowe (Point Loma Nazarene, CA) was 4-2 with a 4.57 ERA at Great Falls. ... Nathan Jones (fifth round, Northern Kentucky) was 0-4 with a 5.13 ERA in 13 games (10 starts) for Bristol. This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs.