The Chicago White Sox might take this shortstop from Ole Miss.
MLB.com has the Sox selecting Mississippi shortstop Jacob Gonzalez. He is MLB Pipeline’s 18th-best draft prospect.
ESPN is high on Gonzalez as they have him ranked No. 6 on their big board.
The kid can mash as he belted out 40 career home runs at Ole Miss. He batted .327 with a .435 on-base percentage and a .564 slugging percentage last season.
He was the National Freshman of the Year in 2021 and won the College World Series in 2022.
His fielding also improved over his three seasons for Ole Miss. He happens to hit left-handed. Power from the left side has been a weakness for the Sox organization, so adding him could help the batting order in the future.
The Sox could also take a high school shortstop.
Fox Sports thinks the White Sox will take Arjun Nimmala out of Strawberry Crest HS in Florida. Nimmala is committed to playing at Florida State, but he wants to be the first player of Indian descent to make it to the big leagues.
"My parents...they just wanted to give their kids an opportunity to achieve everything they want and to be successful in life."
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) July 6, 2023
Arjun Nimmala has a chance to become the first player of Indian descent to play in Major League Baseball. pic.twitter.com/YfjNwt9loz
He is the 11th-rated prospect per MLB Pipeline and ESPN.
He is ranked as the top shortstop prospect in the county for prospective colleges. Nimmala can hit for power and to all fields. Nimmala has tremendous upside.
If Nimmala is available, this could be the player Shirley urges Hahn to sign off on as he went with another shortstop prep prospect in 2021 when the team selected Colson Montgomery. Montgomery’s future looks bright.
Montgomery’s presence in the organization should not block Nimmala as either player can be moved to a different infield position. That is the beauty of taking a shortstop–they have positional versatility.
The Chicago White Sox might pick this Florida pitcher.
The Athletic’s Keith Law predicts the Sox will take right-hander Hurston Waldrep.
He is MLB Pipeline’s No. 19 draft prospect and ESPN ranks him at 14. Waldrep’s fastball, changeup, and curveball all rate very high. He can also mix in a slider and a splitter.
He pitched two seasons at Southern Miss before transferring to the Gators.
He had a 4.16 ERA last season, but opposing hitters batted just .228 off of him and struck out 156. Waldrep can reach 99 mph on his fastball.
He had 27 strikeouts during this year’s postseason. He struck out 12 against UConn in the regional elimination game.
Hurston Waldrep keeps @GatorsBB alive with a 12-strikeout performance!
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) June 4, 2023
Here's more about the No. 20 Draft prospect: https://t.co/MbGtW2nleipic.twitter.com/T67BToSXsN
Then he fanned 13 against South Carolina and 12 versus Oral Roberts. Those were two outstanding baseball programs.
This might be another pick Shirley wants the Sox to make as he took a similar pitcher in Garrett Crochet in his first draft.
Although, Waldrep is a righty. He still possesses the most valuable aspect of pitching and that is velocity. Having an array of other pitches is what makes a possible top-of-the-rotation starter in the big leagues someday.