White Sox Part With John Shelby - A Lesson In Tools v Skills and Upside v Projectability

Yesterday a minor trade was made that most folks won't care about in which a 26 year old who'd struggled in back-to-back seasons at AA was dealt off to the Rays for cash consideration. Happens all the time. But in this case it was a toolsy 5th round pick named John Shelby. Shelby put himself onto the prospect map with a phenomenal 2007 season, posting a .868 OPS in A ball and prompting Baseball America to add him to their 2008 White Sox Top-10 Prospects list. In their description of him they said;

"Shelby has the best combination of power and speed in the system. Though he's only 5-foot-10, he's strong for his size. He adds to his plus speed with good baserunning instincts and could develop into an even bigger stolen-base threat. He's improving in center field and has an average arm."