White Sox 2026 Top Prospects: No.18 Looks To Cement Himself In Chicago

After the last White Sox failed rebuild, they took a hit in terms of talent throughout the minor leagues. For a few years in a row, the White Sox ranked in the middle of the pack or towards the bottom in farm system rankings. However, towards the end of Rick Hahn’s tenure and to start Chris Getz’s tenure, the focus has to been to build that talent pool back up.

Now, the White Sox farm system sits in the top half of the league and most outlets give them five to six top prospects, with a few more on the fringe of making the list. However, what differentiates this from the last rebuild is the fact that the farm system is significantly deeper, as they have some very intriguing players outside of the top “consensus” prospects.

This comes after many of their main guys on the roster have graduated off top prospect lists. Guys like Kyle Teel, Edgar Quero, Colson Montgomery, etc. are no longer considered prospects, but are already making a contribution at the major league level. Despite this, the White Sox still have many top prospects, making this vastly different from the early 2020s, as once all the main players made their debut, the farm system was depleted.

As we start the season, we will dive into our White Sox top prospect list, getting to know some of the depth in the system. We started with number twenty, making our way to the best prospect in the White Sox system. We just unveiled our 19th ranked prospect, Aldrin Bautista in the last article, here we cover number 18, Jacob Gonzalez. Gonzalez was a former first round pick of the White Sox back in the 2023 draft, out of Ole Miss.

Gonzalez made his debut in Kannapolis later that season, where he hit .207 with one home run and 13 RBIs over 30 games. He also had a solid .328 on base percentage, as he struck out 23 times compared to just 20 walks. While the advanced stats were relatively decent, the average could have been a few ticks higher.

In 2024, Gonzalez split time between the Winston-Salem Dash and the Birmingham Barons. He played 36 games with the Dash, hitting .273 with three home runs and 15 RBIs. This was much better than his debut last year and that’s what earned him his promotion to Birmingham.

However, once at Birmingham, the production took a little bit of a dip. In 94 games, he hit .225 with five home runs and 42 RBIs in 407 PA’s. He made a ton of contact, as he only struck out 57 times compared to 28 walks. He also added 10 stolen bases.

In 2025, Gonzalez resumed in AA. In 89 games, he hit .244 with six home runs and 47 RBIs. He also stole 12 bases and struck out 52 times compared to 28 walks. He then made his way to Charlotte after a promotion towards the end of the year.

In AAA with the Knights, he played in 46 games hitting .204 with two home runs and 14 RBIs. He walked 20 times compared to 34 strikeouts. This wasn’t exactly the season he wanted to have, as he was a streaky hitter.

However, Gonzalez is off to a scorching start in 2026, as he is two for six with two home runs. This is nice to see, as power hasn’t been a part of Gonzalez‘s game to this point.

Jacob Gonzalez with his 2nd HR of the game. #Knights take a 3-2 lead. pic.twitter.com/srFYZD0NMZ

— FutureSox (@FutureSox) March 29, 2026

Gonzalez is just 23 and still has a lot of time to prove he belongs in the MLB. His ability to limit his strikeouts and be an overall well-rounded player should help him get to Chicago at some point. However, his underwhelming performances in the minor leagues is what drops him on this list. For a first round pick, you would expect a little bit more out of Gonzalez, as he is a career .233 hitter in the minor leagues.

But, things can change and some players may just take a little bit longer to get used to their surroundings. He has never played more than 94 games at a level in a season before getting promoted to the next one. With more continuity he could potentially find his way to Chicago at some point this year.