Reynaldo Lopez has etched his name in the White Sox future plans

Reynaldo Lopez’ spectacular 2018 season continued on Sunday, as Lopez struck out eight in eight shutout innings against the Texas Rangers.

Yoan Moncada, Eloy Jimenez, Michael Kopech: Prior to this season, the image of the Chicago White Sox rebuild consisted mainly of those three.

Things have changed this season, and it now goes beyond any of the above players.

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Reynaldo Lopez, the second man acquired in the 2016 Adam Eaton trade, has launched his name into the core of the White Sox rebuild.

Its not that Lopez wasn’t already in those plans — Lopez was the 38th-ranked prospect in MLB.com’s 2016 end-of-the-year rankings.

But due to the performance of fellow premier pitching prospects such as Kopech, Dylan Cease and Dane Dunning, Lopez went largely overlooked, even after an efficient 2017 that saw him go 3-3 with a 4.72 ERA in eight starts.

As for 2018, Lopez has been far-and-away the top starter on the White Sox staff. Lopez is 1-3 with a 2.98 ERA in nine starts.

Lopez sits at 12th in the American League’s ERA rankings, ahead of former Cy-Young award winners Rick Porcello (18th) and Dallas Keuchel (19th).

Opponents are hitting just .202 against Lopez, thanks to his upper-90s fastball and above-average changeup. At 24-years old, Lopez is well on his way to becoming a mainstay in the White Sox rotation for several years to come.

This video says it all. Lopez is brimming with confidence. It takes a special talent to focus into finishing off a masterpiece on the mound with a big strikeout, especially after talking your manager out of pulling you.

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The future is pivotal for Lopez, but it’s certainly looking up for the rising star. Two years from now, we could be looking at Lopez as the best pitcher on a star-studded staff including Kopech, Cease, Dunning and Alec Hansen.

The pitching of Lopez will be one of the biggest things to watch going forward for Sox fans throughout the 2018 season, as he has already done his part to provide premier entertainment on the bump.