ARLINGTON, Texas — By and large, the Red Sox have done extremely well with their top draft picks under the current front office. Virtually every top pick has yielded meaningful value for the club, whether by reaching the major leagues or through a trade. The 2002 draft yielded Jon Lester with the Sox’ first pick; 2003 yielded a pair of eventual trade chips in David Murphy and Matt Murton; 2004 gave Boston Dustin Pedroia; one year later, the team grabbed Jacoby Ellsbury. The top picks in the 2007-09 drafts (2007 top pick Nick Hagadone was a key to the Victor Martinez deal with the Indians; 2008 and 2009 first rounders Casey Kelly and Reymond Fuentes were both in the Adrian Gonzalez deal) all helped deliver impact talent to the Sox.

But there’s one outlier. On Saturday, the Red Sox released 2006 first round pick Jason Place. The outfielder — a two-sport star in high school — was drafted out of South Carolina by the Sox with the No. 27 overall pick that year. His across-the-board skill set earned comparisons to Trot Nixon. The Sox were at a point in their farm system where they wanted to aim high and go for impact players; Place’s tools made him a player about whom the Sox could dream big.

And even now, in hindsight, it’s not that difficult to understand what the Sox saw in him.

Daniel Bard — whom the Sox drafted one pick after Place, with the No. 28 overall pick in 2006 — played with the outfielder in Greenville in 2007. Place was playing essentially in his home town following a very solid debut in pro ball in 2006, hitting .292 with a .386 OBP, .442 slugging mark and four homers in the Gulf Coast League. There were aspects of Place’s game as a 19-year-old that were simply different from his peers of the same age.

“There’s a big building in left field in Greenville – an apartment or warehouse building. It’s huge, four stories or five stories high,” recalled Bard. “It covered all the way from the left field line almost all the way to center field. If you really got a hold of one, you could put it on top of the building. He used to hit them up there pretty consistently in batting practice.

“In practice, he’s a five-tool guy, if that makes any sense,” Bard continued. “He can run; big, strong kid; took the most impressive round of batting practice you’ll ever see – an impressive big league batting practice as far as he could hit the ball and stuff; always played really good defense – that translated to the game – always played hard out there with a plus arm, would run into a wall for you.”

The natural gifts were obvious. But…

“The old breaking ball got him, I guess,” said Bard. “He couldn’t hit it consistently enough.”

Place’s swing had a hitch that the Sox thought could be ironed out with instruction when they drafted him. They were willing to take a chance on a player with a flaw because, without it, a player with his potential upside wouldn’t have been available at that position in the draft.

The Sox anticipated that Place would struggle early in his pro career, but thought that over time, he would be able to put his talents together to become a potential impact big leaguer. But despite Place’s best, tireless efforts to iron out his swing, it never happened. Place struck out so much that his prodigious power didn’t have a chance to play. That led to immense frustration and a constant search in his approach. He hit .214 with a .657 OPS in Greenville in ’07, .246 with a .752 OPS in Lancaster in ’08; and .253 with a .719 OPS while splitting time between Hi-A Salem and Double-A Portland in ’09.

The situation began to grind on Place. In 2010, after a dismal start in Portland (.127 with a .491 OPS), the outfielder and the Sox decided that he should spend some time away from the game to clear his head and sort out his future. He decided to return a couple months later, but in 13 games, he struck out 19 times in 40 at-bats against Rookie Level and Hi-A competition.

With the Sox farm system increasingly crowded with athletic outfielders, the window for Place had closed. And so, he was released coming out of spring training, offering something of a cautionary tale about the challenges of the draft.

“There’s only so much research you can do to see how a guy’s going to fare with everything in pro ball,” noted Bard.

Red Sox amateur scouting director Jason McLeod visited the WEEI.com Virtual Press Box to discuss the draft and Red Sox prospects on Thursday afternoon. Here is a transcript of the chat, in which McLeod discussed the status of prospects such as Ryan Westmoreland, Casey Kelly, Lars Anderson, Dustin Richardson, Luis Exposito and Eammon Portice, among many others:

On whether Ryan Westmoreland’s broken collarbone affected the outfielder’s prospect status:

Not at all. It’s unfortunate that Ryan has had to deal with two injuries since he signed but he went out and had a very productive summer before crashing into the outfield wall and injuring his clavicle. Baseball America recently rated him the #1 prospect in the NY Penn League.

When Dustin Richardson was scouted, did you view his future as being that of a starter or reliever?

Our scouts who saw him [in 2006] in the Big 12 (Jim Robinson and Dave Finley) thought he could have a productive career in a relief role and that’s how we saw him when he entered the system. He is in the Arizona Fall League now and has definitely put himself in contention to get a serious look from the ML staff in spring training.

Do you view Casey Kelly’s future as being as a shortstop or pitcher?

Casey is a talented two way player and I believe he has a bright future on the mound. Seeing what he was able to do this year in his first year pitching at the professional level confirmed that thought.

How do you assess Michael Almanzar’s struggles this year?

Michael, like most young Latin players, is still in the early development stages of his career. He has developmental goals that we have laid out for him and now it’s a matter of letting him play and mature. He was still very young for the leagues he was competing in.

What would you recommend to someone trying to find an internship in baseball ops or scouting?

The Winter Meetings can help if you can get a face to face interview. That is hard to do at times as there are plenty of other candidates looking to do the same thing. I would start by sending a resume to all 30 clubs with your interests & ability.

Do you draft for need or do you take the best player available?

Our focus will always be on selecting the player who we feel can bring the most impact to the organization.

Why did Jason Thompson (an 11th-round pick) get only one plate appearance in the GCL after signing?

Jason signed late…near the August 15th signing deadline…then was battling a sore hamstring shortly after arriving so he didn’t get much time on the field. The good news is he was able to get plenty of ab’s in the recently completed Instructional League.

What impressions did you have of Jose Iglesias from Instructional League?

I only got a limited look at our Instructional League team due to post season scouting commitments. Saying that, I was impressed with the entire group down there. I have yet to see [Iglesias] but will get my first look shortly out in the Arizona Fall League.

How do you see Madison Younginer (7th rounder) and David Renfroe (3rd rounder) panning out?

Both Madison and David have very big upsides due to their athleticism and physical tools. Like a lot of 18 year old kids, they are still unpolished and have plenty of development ahead of them but we certainly like their potential for impact.

Is there any chance that Casey Kelly could be in the majors by next September?

I think that would be a lot to ask of Casey considering he hasn’t had a full season of pitching under his belt. He is advanced for his age but as with all of our pitchers, there will be a plan laid out for him in terms of innings, usage, etc.

What type of prospect is Eammon Portice, who led the Carolina League in strikeouts (141 in 128.1 innings)?

Eammon is a versatile guy that provides a different look as he has a deceptive delivery and will use different angles. As you mentioned, he has swing & miss stuff as evidenced by his strikeouts and has put himself in position to be considered in the future.

I wonder how (or if) your perceptions of age versus level change when it comes to position players that convert to pitchers? I have an ulterior motive as I have a son (in a different organization) who took up pitching at 22 after four years of college and one professional year as a shortstop. He spent this season in the SALLY league as a 24 year old (his second season as a pitcher after having not pitched since middle school). The “prospect” evaluators expect a certain progression pace. Do the front offices expect the same in this type of situation?

I think most evaluators (both scouts and front office) weigh all factors when writing reports. A “prospect” is determined by what is perceived to be his ML value no matter the age. A 24 year old in the SAL may not get as much love from Baseball America but if the stuff & ability are there, the scouts and front offices will take notice. As for progression, you would hope he could be at the higher levels sooner as his 6 year free agent status will come into play.

How did you get your start in baseball operations?

After my brief minor league pitching career, I was fortunate enough to get an internship with the Padres back in 1994. Kevin Towers was the Scouting Director at the time and I begged him to let me do anything for him (file reports, help with tryout camps, etc). Fortunately, I was able to hang around long enough and eventually ended up coaching in the minor leagues for San Diego before moving back to the front office. Kevin & Theo took me to lunch one day in 2001 and talked to me about becoming a scout. The rest as they say is history…

Can you provide a scouting report on yourself as a pitcher? How did your stuff grade?

Lol…you really want to know that? Hmm…I was the ultimate “projection guy”. 6’3″ 190 lbs, 87-90 with limited life. Best pitch was probably my straight change up. The development in terms of velocity and a breaking pitch just didn’t come along. Hey, what can you expect out of a 44th round draft pick?

Roman Mendez and Manuel Rivera, the ace twins of the Gulf Coast team… starting in full season ball next April?

That is still to be determined but they certainly have earned a hard look. With all of the younger players we’ve been drafting and the stellar work by Craig Shipley and his staff on the International side, there will be some hard decisions to be made. That’s a good thing…..

Does performance affect draft status?

It depends on what aspects of performance you’re looking at. Obviously, it’s much easier to track college performance and we ask a lot of questions of our scouts about certain players performance in a given year.

What organizational goals did Jason Place reach in Salem to earn his promotion to Portland, and how do you view his overall development during his time with the seadogs? Do you feel he can cut down enough on his strike out rates to have an eventual impact on the major league level?

‘Without getting into specifics, Jason has made incremental improvements on a yearly basis in terms of how he controls his ab’s to development with swing mechanics. The tools we saw in Jason as an amateur are still there now in terms of bat speed, raw power, and defense. Obviously, he has had his struggles with the strikeouts and that has been a large part of his development plan. He is still only 21 yrs old and hung in there at the AA level this year which he will most likely repeat next year. The tools are in place but there is still honing that needs to be done.

Can you name one positional player and one pitcher who you expect to be the 2010 breakout prospects in the Red Sox system? Thanks.

Wow…that’s a tough question to answer Bill because I think there are multiple candidates. It also depends on what’s categorized as a “breakout player”. Is it someone whose not considered a prospect at this time? Is it a Ryan Westmoreland who will play in his first full season league? I hate to back out of this question but my hope is we’ll be arguing come next September on who should be those players due to multiple nominees.

A lot of time is spent on high draft picks and they are seen by multiple evaluators but few make it to the majors. What are some of the common factors that come up as to why they didn’t make it?

Well first of all it is really, really hard to play in the Major Leagues. There are only 750 spots for the thousands of professional ballplayers under contract. I don’t have the exact figure in front of me but I believe it somewhwere around 10% of all drafted players that get to the ML’s. As to factors for not making it, a lot of times it’s just plain ability. Sometimes I need to remind myself how talented these guys are even when they’re struggling.

Mark Wagner had a pretty nice bounce back year after an awful 2008. Given his impressive offensive numbers before ’08, and his consistent ability to throw out runners, is he being looked at as a possibility to back up Victor Martinez next year?

Wags has definitely put himself in position to get a good look from the ML staff come Spring Training. Ultimately, Theo will have to make the decision on our backup catching situation.

Do you see a player like Anthony Rizzo having a place on the major league team in the future? What exactly does he have in terms of tools that could make him valuable to a big league club?

First of all, Anthony is an outstanding kid with great makeup. To come back the way he did after missing the majority of last season was truly inspirational. As to his on field ability, he has a fluid left-handed swing with a mature hitting approach and a chance to hit for avg or better power from the 1b position. He also is a sound defensive player. He’s still very young considering he missed an entire year.

When do you project Luis Exposito Making it to the MLB?

A lot of that depends on what our catching situation is at the ML level. This was a big year for Luis and like Wags, he has put himself in position to get a good look from our staff in the spring.

Any power hitting prospects we should be looking out for moving up anytime soon?

If moving up means at the ML level, Lars is probably the closest. This wasn’t the year Lars was expecting of himself but I expect him to bounce back in 2010. Exposito also has plenty of power though I wouldn’t consider him to be ML ready. As to those who have already played at the ML level, Josh Reddick would be the guy.

I have read some interviews this summer with Lars and it strikes me that this guy is almost too cerebral and as a result, he struggles with his confidence. Is that a worry ….that this guy has too much going on upstairs?

I wouldn’t call Lars cerebral as he is a diligent hard working kid who is fun loving in the clubhouse. If anything, I would say he tends to over analyze and he has been that way since HS. He expects a lot of himself and going through a rough patch as he did this year, there was a constant sense of “searching for the answer” instead of just playing and letting his natural ability take over. He would’ve been a junior in college this year had we not signed him and with the attention he’s received, he hasn’t had much time to mature on his own as others his age would.

BOSTON — With names like Lars Anderson, Ryan Kalish, and Michael Bowden in town for Futures at Fenway, it wasn’t likely that an all-but-forgotten first-round pick would steal the limelight on Saturday. Fortunately for Red Sox fans, that’s exactly what Portland left fielder Jason Place did.

After showing power unmatched by teammates in batting practice, Place proceeded to send a 90-mph fastball from Bowie BaySox starter Steve Johnson over the Monster for a two-run blast in the bottom of the second. The outfielder, is California-born but played his high school ball in Piedmont, S.C., added another RBI in the sixth on a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch in a 3-2 Sea Dogs win that served as a reminder as to why he was taken the pick before Daniel Bard back in 2006.

“It was such a great feeling,” Place said of what was also his first Double A homer after the game. “When I hit it I didn’t know if it was going to be high enough to get out. I was just praying, ‘Get up, get up! Oh please, God, get up!’”

The Sea Dogs win was followed by a 7-3 Pawtucket loss to the Norfolk Tides, but as the 32,251 shuffled out of the stadium at roughly quarter to six, it was Place who left the lasting impression.

It wasn’t his first time at Fenway, as he took part in pre-draft workouts in ‘06, but the 21-year-old said that starring in a win in front of Boston fans “[blew] that out of the water.” Place is now hitting .191 in 14 games since being summoned from Single A Salem.

While Place provided the offense, those on hand for the matinee were treated to some stellar pitching by Portland lefty Felix Doubront. The 21-year-old Venezuelan struck out the first four batters he faced and K’d seven total over five innings of two-run ball. Doubront’s one slip-up came in his final inning of work in the form of a two-run homer from Bowie catcher Adam Donachie.

From a stuff standpoint, Doubront showcased a four-seam fastball that sat in the low-to-mid 90’s and touched 94 mph in addition to a low-80’s changeup and low-to-mid 70’s curveball that froze BaySox center fielder Daniel Figueroa in the first. Though his changeup was seen as being more established than his curve coming into the season, he threw the pitch minimally. Ryne Miller, who came away with the win, and Dustin Richardson each contributed two shutout innings apiece to extend the record of Red Sox affiliates to 7-0 in Futures at Fenway games prior to the Pawtucket loss.

While Junichi Tazawa (and then Enrique Gonzalez, who was called to the big club’s aid in New York) was expected to headline the Triple A matchup between the PawSox and Tides, 29-year-old knuckleballer Charlie Zink, who gave up eight earned in his lone Major League start last August 12 against the Rangers, had to suffice for those on hand at Fenway. Zink lasted five and a third, surrendering five runs, all of which were earned, while throwing a wild pitch and hitting two batters. All in all, five batters were hit in the game, with Norfolk starter Jake Arrieta hitting two and Pawtucket reliever T.J. Large hitting one.

The PawSox had jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the third thanks to a two-run single by Jeff Bailey, but the Norfolk tied it up the very next inning with two runs of their own. A two-run double in the sixth for Tide shortstop Blake Davis followed by a Robby Hammock groundout chased Zink from the game, but it wasn’t until after a Brandon Pinckney RBI single off of Large that the book was closed on Zink, who took the loss.

The Tide added two more in the eighth of Large, with the final PawSox run coming in the same inning off a throwing error to Bob McRory on what appeared to be a routine 1-4-3 double play. Two-out walks by Chris Carter and Sean Danielson in the bottom of the ninth went for naught when recently-acquired Chris Duncan flew to center to end the game.

“I’m really disappointed that we’re the first [Sox affiliate] to lose here, but it was still very exciting to be out on the field,” PawSox manager Ron Johnson said following the loss. “It’s always fun, I mean it’s beautiful.

“It’s wonderful sitting in the dugout, it’s wonderful watching guys run out on the field, the fans [are] phenomenal, they just continually cheer. It’s great.”

The PawSox will travel to Charlotte for a series beginning Monday while the Sea Dogs return home Sunday against Bowie.

Ordinarily, a mid-day start by Tim Wakefield at the Red Sox’ minor-league complex would pass rather quietly. Yet today’s start by the 42-year-old carries some added intrigue.

Wakefield will pitch for the first time since the job of catching the knuckleballer was declared George Kottaras‘ to lose on Wednesday. The 25-year-old Kottaras will now be subject to heightened scrutiny for the way in which he tosses each of Wakefield’s throws. With the Red Sox scheduled to play tonight in Sarasota, the event of the pairing of those two battery mates will assume center stage during the day.

A couple of additional notes at the minor-league complex this morning:

–Jason Place is still trying to get past the ligament strain in his right ankle, suffered at the end of last season. He is taking batting practice but being held out of games. Place hopes that he will be able to start competing in the next couple days.

–While in major-league camp, Lars Anderson wore the number of a defensive lineman (No. 78) while Josh Reddick played the part of a wide receiver (No. 82). Now, following their re-assignment to minor-league camp, both have been given digits more suitable to baseball, with Anderson wearing No. 5 and Reddick No. 30.

–With ever greater attention given to the notion of the Red Sox catcher of the future, one potential catcher of the distant future has shown some intriguing tools in camp. Oscar Perez, a 17-year-old from Venezuela who was the jewel of last year’s class of international amateur free agent signees (non-Junichi Tazawa division), has shown impressive all-fields power at an early stage, and will certainly be intriguing to monitor as he prepares to play in the U.S.