Beneath is an evaluation of the prospects within the farm system of the Chicago White Sox. Scouting experiences have been compiled with data supplied by business sources in addition to our personal observations. That is the fourth 12 months we’re delineating between two anticipated reduction roles, the abbreviations for which you’ll see within the “place” column beneath: MIRP for multi-inning reduction pitchers, and SIRP for single-inning reduction pitchers. The ETAs listed usually correspond to the 12 months a participant needs to be added to the 40-man roster to keep away from being made eligible for the Rule 5 draft. Handbook changes are made the place they appear applicable, however we use that as a rule of thumb.
A fast overview of what FV (Future Worth) means could be discovered right here. A a lot deeper overview could be discovered right here.
The entire ranked prospects beneath additionally seem on The Board, a useful resource the positioning provides that includes sortable scouting data for each group. It has extra particulars (and up to date TrackMan information from varied sources) than this text and integrates each crew’s listing so readers can examine prospects throughout farm programs. It may be discovered right here.
Different Prospects of Word
Grouped by kind and listed so as of choice inside every class.
Sleeper Arms with a Plus Breaking Ball
Juan Carela, RHP
Connor McCullough, RHP
Jonah Scolaro, LHP
Mason Adams, RHP
Shane Murphy, LHP
Carela, 22, was acquired from the Yankees on the 2023 deadline in alternate for Keynan Middleton. He’s a kitchen sink righty with a 90-92 mph fastball and a great cutter. He additionally had extra strike-throwing success in 2023 than he’s had up to now and is a reasonably high-floored spot starter kind. McCullough had essentially the most statistically profitable season of any honorable point out prospect right here. His glorious slider carries most of his profile’s weight, as he sits 91 and is a 40-grade athlete. Scolaro is a 25-year-old lefty with a great slider and a sneaky upper-80s heater. Adams sits 90-92, additionally has a great slider, and climbed three ranges to Double-A final 12 months. Murphy is 6-foot-5 and was drafted out of an Arizona JUCO two years in the past. He’s a command-oriented, four-pitch lefty who sits simply 89, however he nonetheless carved Low-A as a barely old-for-the-level prospect in 2023.
Nicely-Identified Fallen Prospects
Braden Shewmake, SS
José Rodríguez, 2B
Norge Vera, RHP
Matthew Thompson, RHP
Kohl Simas, RHP
Jared Kelley, RHP
Yoelqui Céspedes, RF
Wes Kath, 3B
Typically this part of the listing serves to anticipate gamers readers may wish to learn about although we don’t assume they’re prospects. Shewmake is a former first spherical decide who came visiting as a part of the Aaron Bummer commerce, which Eric wrote up right here. We nonetheless like Rodríguez’s rotational athleticism and assume he will get on prime of some pitches that few different hitters can, however profitable large league hitters don’t chase as a lot as he does, and those who do make up for it with in-zone contact talent that hasn’t adopted Rodríguez to the higher ranges. Vera appeared like he’d have an 80-grade fastball when he first debuted within the U.S., however he hasn’t been capable of keep wholesome and has solely been sitting 92 when he’s pitched the final couple years. Thompson and Simas should be upper-level depth arms. Thompson was a low-90s/curveball dev challenge in highschool and has by no means actually gotten higher. Simas was a large number in school and appeared higher upon his preliminary entry to professional ball, however he has since plateaued as a low-90s vertical fastball/curveball man with below-average management. Kelley was a high-profile highschool decide with a mature construct and nice changeup. His velo and command have backed up. Céspedes would nonetheless be on the primary part of the listing if we felt like he might play heart discipline. His method is simply too aggressive for him to get to his energy. Kath was a second spherical decide from a pair years in the past and has struggled adjusting to professional high quality stuff.
Bat-to-Ball Sleepers
Ronny Hernandez, C
Brooks Baldwin, CF/INF
Mario Camilletti, 2B/3B
Rikuu Nishida, LF
Hernandez is a younger catcher who has had two good statistical seasons in rookie ball. There isn’t a consensus as as to whether or not he’ll be capable of catch, and his scouting report has plenty of 40-grade instruments in addition to his contact potential. That can be okay if he turns right into a viable defender. Baldwin is a sweet-swinging switch-hitter who performed all around the discipline in school. His defensive versatility and common bat-to-ball potential might earn him a multi-positional part-time function finally. Camilletti and Nishida are wee little grinders who can deal with the bat. They’re in all probability too small to hit for large leauge-worthy energy.
Developmental Arms
Christian Oppor, LHP
Luis Rodriguez, RHP sa3021816
Mathias LaCombee, RHP
Bryce Collins, RHP
Oppor is a well-built JUCO lefty with a 90-94 mph heater and a promising slider. Rodriguez is a 20-year-old, 6-foot-2 righty who dominated the 2023 DSL with an 88-90 mph fastball and an above-average curveball. LaCombe is a 6-foot-2 French righty drafted out of an Arizona JUCO in 2023. At occasions throughout his draft spring, he was as much as 97. Extra typically, although, he sits about 92 and has a promising two-plane slider. Collins started his school profession at Arizona however adopted Jay Johnson to LSU, the place he struggled to throw strikes. He was sitting 94-96 and bending in a great curveball at Tread Athletics when the White Sox signed him in the course of the offseason.
System Overview
Whereas this farm system nonetheless isn’t among the many strongest in baseball, it’s considerably deeper than it was a 12 months in the past, strengthened by a number of key acquisitions eventually 12 months’s commerce deadline, together with Edgar Quero, Nick Nastrini, Jake Eder and Ky Bush. That development will possible proceed if the Sox commerce Dylan Stop. Chicago has as many gamers with the potential for high-end affect — Colson Montgomery, Bryan Ramos, Noah Schultz, perhaps Eder if his velo comes again — as plenty of the highest programs, although all of these guys missed time because of damage in 2023.
New GM Chris Getz was promoted from inside, so although the org will possible change considerably as it really works to execute his imaginative and prescient for the membership, count on extra continuity right here than usually accompanies a regime change. As an illustration, Getz instructed Eric on the GM Conferences that the White Sox would possible alter their method to worldwide scouting, which for the final a few years has seen them save pool area to focus on Cuban gamers who hit the market late. For too lengthy the White Sox have tied one metaphorical hand behind their again by largely ignoring newbie Dominican gamers, and it looks as if that can quickly change.
Within the home draft, director Mike Shirley has now been in place for a few years. Along with the White Sox concentrating on high-profile gamers from the Midwest throughout his tenure, they’ve prioritized pitching prospects with premium breaking stuff, drafted plenty of scrappy little school infielders within the center rounds, and sometimes discovered a technique to combine a huge-framed energy hitter in there someplace. There was no actual sample on the very prime of Chicago’s previous couple of drafts. Jacob Gonzalez is a model-friendly prospect due to his age and stats, whereas Montgomery (previous for his class) and Schultz (a prep arm) have been toolsy, projectable excessive schoolers. Schultz turned the primary highschool arm the crew had chosen within the first spherical in over 20 years.
The White Sox professional division obtained to focus on gamers through commerce final summer time and once more this offseason. Chicago has thus far taken a quantity-first method to this rebuild, maybe extra as a result of this technique is fairly skinny and so they really feel prefer it’s a prudent technique to get the ball rolling than as a mirrored image of some long-term technique or overarching philosophy.
In the end, Jerry Reinsdorf is in cost. Folks in baseball think about him a bit meddlesome and assume he is a little more concerned than is right, and generally consider his fierce loyalty prevents him from transferring on from folks or processes that aren’t serving to the crew. At occasions below Rick Hahn and Kenny Williams, it felt like there have been too many cooks on this kitchen. Getz’s observe report of creating gamers in his earlier function was blended, partly as a result of the franchise was thus far behind conceptually and technologically after they employed him, however a few of the communication breakdowns and behind-the-scenes drama ought to go away now that the GM is an individual who needed to successfully talk throughout an entire division as a core facet of their job.