Post by Fish Troll on Jun 7, 2008 19:18:46 GMT -5
CHICAGO (AP) -- The Chicago White Sox selected a pair of outfielders with familiar last names in the 2008 first-year player draft.
They added Kenny Williams Jr., son of White Sox general manager Kenny Williams, and Jordan Danks, brother of left-handed starter John Danks.
The younger Williams, a senior at Wichita State, was the 210th overall pick. He batted .325 with 16 stolen bases this season and scored two runs Friday in Wichita State's opening game against Florida State in the super regional of the College Baseball World Series.
"I had some serious reservations about selecting him," the elder Williams said. "At one point I told our guys to just let him go elsewhere so he wouldn't have to deal with whatever he's going to have to deal with."
Any reservations the father had about the son's pick were dismissed when the White Sox realized the younger Williams was too good a prospect to pass on.
"They kept coming back to me saying, 'No, we think you are making a mistake because he could be one of the best athletes we have in the organization and we shouldn't let him pass by because of his name," Williams said.
It's a situation that White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen is familiar with after the White Sox made his son, Oney, the 1,102nd overall pick of the last year's draft.
"It's a lot of pressure when your kid is playing the organization and you're the boss," Guillen said. "We're not going to give him special treatment. It's still a lot of pressure. It's like when Oney plays I get more nervous than he does, but that's our kids.'
Danks, a junior at the University of Texas, batted .321 with 46 RBI and was the 210th overall pick.
"It's all up to him to just go out there and produce," John Danks said. "I know the White Sox liked him coming out of high school. Fortunately he was there for them today."
They added Kenny Williams Jr., son of White Sox general manager Kenny Williams, and Jordan Danks, brother of left-handed starter John Danks.
The younger Williams, a senior at Wichita State, was the 210th overall pick. He batted .325 with 16 stolen bases this season and scored two runs Friday in Wichita State's opening game against Florida State in the super regional of the College Baseball World Series.
"I had some serious reservations about selecting him," the elder Williams said. "At one point I told our guys to just let him go elsewhere so he wouldn't have to deal with whatever he's going to have to deal with."
Any reservations the father had about the son's pick were dismissed when the White Sox realized the younger Williams was too good a prospect to pass on.
"They kept coming back to me saying, 'No, we think you are making a mistake because he could be one of the best athletes we have in the organization and we shouldn't let him pass by because of his name," Williams said.
It's a situation that White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen is familiar with after the White Sox made his son, Oney, the 1,102nd overall pick of the last year's draft.
"It's a lot of pressure when your kid is playing the organization and you're the boss," Guillen said. "We're not going to give him special treatment. It's still a lot of pressure. It's like when Oney plays I get more nervous than he does, but that's our kids.'
Danks, a junior at the University of Texas, batted .321 with 46 RBI and was the 210th overall pick.
"It's all up to him to just go out there and produce," John Danks said. "I know the White Sox liked him coming out of high school. Fortunately he was there for them today."
sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/baseball/mlb/06/06/bc.bba.whitesox.william.ap/index.html
