Chicago White Sox Preliminary Prospect List

by John Sickels on Jan 5, 2026 9:00 AM EST

Below the fold....

Chicago White Sox 34 players

Spencer Arroyo             LHP
Kyle Bellamy               RHP
Mike Blanke                C
Ryan Buch                  RHP
Anthony Carter             RHP
Justin Cullop              RHP
Jordan Danks               OF
Terry Doyle                RHP
Eduardo Escobar            SS
Tyler Flowers              C
Miguel Gonzalez            C
Justin Greene              OF
Nevin Griffith             RHP
Matt Heidenreich           RHP
Gregory Infante            RHP
Jared Mitchell             OF
Kevin Moran                RHP
Brent Morel                3B
Jacob Petricka             RHP
Josh Phegley               C
Rangel Ravelo              3B
Addison Reed               RHP
Dan Remenowsky             RHP
Andre Rienzo               RHP
Santos Rodriguez           RHP
Thomas Royce               RHP
Tyler Saladino             SS
Chris Sale                 LHP
Brandon Short              OF
Trayce Thompson            OF
Dayan Viciedo              1B-3B
Andy Wilkins               1B
Ross Wilson                2B

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A couple more I would probably consider...

Charles Leesman - Absolutely terrible (especially peripherally) at High-A last year, but once he got bumped to AA, something flipped the switch. He’s a lefty with decent velocity. Could profile more as a reliever, but in a system seriously lacking pitching depth, he might get a look.

Deunte Heath - Yes, he was 25 and at AA, but the strikeout rate is pretty hard to ignore. He was mostly a starter until last season, so maybe something clicked when he was moved to the pen. Control is obviously a concern. If they can make Santos into a reliever, this should be a piece of cake.

Jon Gilmore - Seems like he’s been around forever, but he’s only 22. Has hit for average, but power hasn’t come around like everyone had hoped. Sounds like he also has trouble defensively at third. Has the pedigree.

Jose Martinez - Outfielder was once on the cusp of breaking through as a big-time prospect. Injuries robbed him of a year and a half. Defense is supposedly good with a great arm. Has flashed some tools offensively.

Nathan Jones - For some reason they decided to move him to the rotation last year after he was excellent in relief (supposedly to work on his offspeed stuff). His stats don’t look pretty last year, but he allegedly has very good velocity and a great curve. Sounds like plenty to be a dominant reliever if he can reign in the walks.

Darwin Matos - I know nothing about him, but he’s young, dominican and it looks like he’s got some stuff. Hopefully you know more about him than I do John.

Stephen Upchurch - Looked like a good pick a couple years ago after a good short season stint. Has stagnated since.

First impressions, good god this system might be even worse than I thought. Way too many relievers and guys in the lower levels. Injuries, slumps, graduations and trades haven’t helped.

by polodude017 on Jan 5, 2026 9:36 AM EST reply actions

hector santiago has intrigued me for awhile.

probably mostly because he’s a lefty in a system almost devoid of them.

leesman, gilmore, martinez and jones should definitely be included as i think they’re clearly top 20 or so prospects in the system. after that things get quite interchangeable so i can’t say you’re wrong about the others you mention.

by larry on Jan 5, 2026 9:45 AM EST up reply actions

Don't know anything about him...

but Kyle Cofield came over from Atlanta in the Linebrink trade. Has struggled a bit as a starter, but if he’s moved to relief and his velocity shoots up to the mid to upper 90’s, he could be useful. Heard he has a solid curve.

by polodude017 on Jan 5, 2026 9:47 AM EST up reply actions

calls

I’ll go with Leesman and Heath since I think they are interestng.

by John Sickels on Jan 5, 2026 1:02 PM EST up reply actions

This system has to be the worst...

I mean, the only guys I’m interested in hearing about are Danks and Thompson and whether either of these guys are going to develop into MLB outfielders.

Others of Note: Brandon Hynick? <———- And that’s bad.

The real question for John…how many other farm systems in MLB have guys that didn’t make the list that would be Top 10 in this system? Hmmm….

by Aslan on Jan 5, 2026 10:09 AM EST reply actions

I would be curious...

to see a breakdown after all the lists are complete. I.e. each team had this many A’s, this many B’s, etc. This could help tell who’s got the top guys, who has the depth, etc. Would be interesting to see.

by polodude017 on Jan 5, 2026 10:34 AM EST up reply actions

Team Grade Comparisons

What, like GPA’s for each team? :)

by psykatek on Jan 5, 2026 10:59 AM EST up reply actions

Nah nothing like that

I would just like to see a breakdown by level. Something like below:

Chicago White Sox

A range: 0 players
B range: 4 players
C range: 12 players

Maybe break it down to plusses and minuses.

by polodude017 on Jan 5, 2026 1:09 PM EST reply actions

Sorry

that should have gone above.

by polodude017 on Jan 5, 2026 1:09 PM EST up reply actions

Sale could sniff an A- with his MLB numbers and the stuff he showed (especially if you buy that they’ll eventually try him as a starter).

by limozeen on Jan 6, 2026 4:04 AM EST up reply actions

Addison Reed

It was only rookie ball, but a 44:6 K:BB in 30 innings is ridiculous.

by istealllamas on Jan 5, 2026 1:39 PM EST reply actions

The Pioneer League is even weirder than the other ss leagues

Since it’s really a ‘tweener between the complex leagues and NWL/NYP and generally played in “unique” conditions/settings, you wind up with utterly bizarre stat lines there fairly often.
To wit, some other ratios this season: Austin Ross 52:6; Greg Wilborn 58:8; Hiram Burgos 48:5; Shawn Tolleson 39:5; and my favorite, Kyle Lotzkar 33:2.
(All of them have in common one thing: they’re college guys…

by realitypolice on Jan 5, 2026 3:14 PM EST up reply actions

Lotzkar was drafted out of HS

http://bullpenbanter.com/

by Jeff Reese on Jan 5, 2026 4:29 PM EST up reply actions

Thanks!

Brain melt.

by realitypolice on Jan 6, 2026 8:02 AM EST up reply actions

Trayce Thompson

His line doesn’t look great, but I was very encouraged by his performance before the hand injury. I think he’s a nice breakout candidate this year and is probably the most interesting guy not in the majors right now.

by WrenFGun on Jan 5, 2026 2:37 PM EST reply actions

I'm still holding out hope for Tyler Flowers to become an impact bat

Dewey and KBR are just.......too........sweeeeeeeeeeeeeet!!!!!!

The Wolfpac is looking for new soldiers! Change your logo to the black and red!!!

by Dewey Finn on Jan 5, 2026 5:20 PM EST reply actions

you'll be disappointed...

Although, I kinda like Phegley…so if things go well there might still be an heir to Pyrzynski floating around that system somewhere. At this point, I’m not thinking “power production”, I’d just be happy to see a catcher hit .275, play defense, and call a good game.

by Aslan on Jan 5, 2026 5:46 PM EST up reply actions