Photo courtesy of Paul Baillargeon |
Shelby heads back to the organization that drafted him in the 5th round in 2006. In fact, John spent 2006-2010 in the White Sox farm system, making it to Double-A Birmingham. He put up outsanding #'s @ every stop in the White Sox system until he reached Double-A and his production dipped slightly, which prompted his move to the Rays organization and time with Double-A Montgomery and Triple-A Durham for the 2011 season.
It's great to see John get back to affiliated ball and it's real nice to see two guys from the 2012 team get picked up in the same week. The pattern is both Logan and John were drafted rather early and both guys have previous affiliated experience, with Shelby having much more than Logan. Shelby was on track to a big league career in his early 20's, he was a top-notch prospect and a big piece of the White Sox organization, but now he's going to have to prove to people that he can still play at a really high level at the age of 27 (turns 28 in August).
Photo courtesy of Frank Orris |
John Shelby Radio Highlights @ Florence
Photo courtesy of Frank Orris |
I texted back and forth with Shelby earlier today and he told me he still doesn't know where they will send him. It most likely depends on how well he does in spring training. It looks like at the very least he will report to Double-A and if he performs well in spring training he could get a Triple-A shot out of the gate.
Everyone with the Grizzlies is extremely excited for John Shelby. I'll continue to follow his career and I hope he gets a shot in the big leagues one day soon!
-Voice of the Grizzlies, Adam Young