Best of Chicago voting is live now. Vote for your favorites »
Cubs fans got a glimpse of Soto at the end of last season, and they liked what they saw. After a Most Valuable Player season at Triple-A Iowa, where he hit .353 with 26 homers and 109 runs batted in, he batted .389 with three more homers and eight RBI while catching 18 games in September. Manager Lou Piniella liked what he saw, too, as Soto started the first two games of the playoffs in Arizona. His homer off Doug Davis to put the Cubs briefly ahead in Game Two was the high point of the series for them, as they went on to be swept in three games. General manager Jim Hendry evidently liked it too: he let Jason Kendall go in free agency to make Soto the de facto Cubs’ starting catcher this season. A 37 ranking isn’t exactly can’t-miss territory, but if Soto can hit 20 homers while batting respectably and calling a good game, he’ll fit right in. BP’s Pecota projection says Soto should approach those numbers. Just as important where the Cubs are concerned, he’s got the matinee-idol looks to have the Wrigley Field tube-top brigade sighing for years.
Poreda was the Sox’ top draft choice too, 25th overall last June, out of the University of San Francisco, and he had a much more impressive debut at Great Falls in the Rookie League. The lefty was undefeated in four decisions, with a sparkling 1.17 earned-run average, with 48 strikeouts against 10 walks in 46 innings. Bears fans should like him, too, as he played defensive end and tight end in high school, and has filled out to 6-foot-6 and 240 pounds. His three-quarter-sidearm delivery — think a big Billy Wagner — produces a fastball that has touched 100 miles an hour and a nasty sinker, but thus far has kept him from developing any other breaking or off-speed pitches. His fastest route to the majors is as a reliever, and if the Sox go through what they did last year in the bullpen, it’s not unthinkable the 21-year-old could be called up this year, though the Sox would no doubt prefer to take it slow and see if he can develop as a starter.
