After suffering 101 losses, the Chicago White Sox reward for terribleness is earning the fifth overall pick. In last year’s draft, that slot value carried a bonus total of $7,139,700 and most likely will exceed the $7.2 million slot value that Andrew Vaughn received for being selected third overall in 2019. Cleveland Guardians and Cincinnati Reds were the biggest benefactors of the draft lottery as they have the top two picks.
So, which college and prep players are worth dreaming about for the White Sox? Unlike last year’s class, there isn’t a bona fide best prospect. Dylan Crews was talked about going #1 overall for three years until his LSU teammate, Paul Skenes, put together the best college pitching season since Stephen Strasburg. Yet, Crews still selected second overall in a loaded Top 5. Wyatt Langford didn’t stop hitting after joining the Texas Rangers system, and the two prep stars Max Clark and Walker Jenkins, still hold a lot of promise. All five players would easily be the #1 prospect in this year’s draft class.
The top 2024 prospects have tantalizing skills but need to be in better positions. Many top bats are either first or second basemen, while the best outfielders have significant red flags from last year’s production that need correction. There are big arms in the starting college pitching class, but all carry considerable reliever risk due to their lack of command.
Again, it’s early, but here are the draft prospects I’m following early for the Chicago White Sox.
West Virginia Shortstop JJ Wetherholt
2023 Stats: .449/.517/.782 | 16 HR 60 RBI | 26 BB | 26 K | 35-for-43 in stolen base attempts
The 2023 NCAA batting champion, JJ Wetherholt, will be considered one of the best draft prospects. Posting a massive increase in batting average from .308 his freshman season to .449 last year, Wetherholt is well-known in circles for consistently posting exit velocities greater than 95 MPH. Last year, Wetherholt was more gap-to-gap, focusing on going up the middle.
What’s maybe more impressive about Wetherholt is how he cut his strikeout rate by more than half from his freshman season. In 2022, his K-rate was 17.5%. Last year, it dropped to 8.2%, which is rare for the college level. However, Wetherholt is not a big walker, as his BB-rate was below 10%. There are a lot of balls in play, which is worth paying attention to if Wetherholt swings at any pitch he can make contact with. While that approach works in college, it generates lousy ground ball tendencies professionally (See: White Sox hitters).
While watching to see if Wetherholt becomes more selective, his defensive position change will garner the most attention. In 2022, Wetherholt was at third base and moved to second base last year. The expectation is West Virginia will roll with Wetherholt at shortstop to start 2024, but there’s a concern about his throwing ability from that position. If Wetherholt isn’t a shortstop, his long-term home could be second base professionally.
Prep Outfielder Konnor Griffin
The 2024 prep class is earning few accolades from draft circles, so it is no surprise that Konnor Griffin has reclassified from the 2025 class and plans to graduate early. An LSU commit, Griffin posted big performances during the summer showcase circuit. At Perfect Game events, Griffin’s max fastball velocity was 94 MPH, but he threw harder with a 96 MPH velocity during outfield drills. Only Oscar Colas had a higher max throwing velocity (100.9 MPH) from the outfield than what Griffin posted.
In addition to a plus-arm, Griffin ran a 6.36 60-yard dash, a 1.56 10-yard split (70+ grade), a max exit velocity of 98 MPH, and a barrel speed of 77.3 MPH.
Not bad for a 17-year-old.
Standing at 6’4”, Griffin has a big frame that he’ll grow more into. If he can maintain his speed, Griffin could stick in center field but definitely has the arm to play in right field. There are always questions about how good a prep hitter is, but the reports from showcases are promising. If the White Sox are serious about adding very athletic players with high upside, Griffin will be considered.
Wake Forest First Baseman Nick Kurtz
2023 Stats: .353/.527/.784 | 24 HR 69 RBI | 63 BB | 50 K
After an impressive freshman season, Nick Kurtz elevated his power numbers in 2023, finishing with a 1.311 OPS thanks to increasing his fly ball % to 52.1%. Kurtz took advantage when playing at a hitter-friendly ballpark in Winston-Salem, bashing 24 home runs with a crazy 32.9% HR/FB rate.
While Kurtz is the most impressive bat, he’s strictly first base as he lacks the athleticism to move to a corner outfield position. With Chris Getz and Josh Barfield harping on the need for more athletes in the White Sox farm system, Kurtz doesn’t match that need. But everyone I speak with raves about Kurtz’s bat and how he could rush through any farm system, much like Wyatt Langford has.
Oregon State Second Baseman Travis Bazzana
2023 Stats: .374/.500/.622 | 11 HR 55 RBI | 59 BB | 47 K | 36-for-39 stolen base attempts
Hailing from Sydney, Australia, Travis Bazzana is attempting to become the first Aussie selected in the first round. Helping lead Oregon State’s offense, Bazzana had a 1.122 OPS thanks to his excellent bat-to-ball skills, generating a .429 BABIP. That swing improvement was developed at Driveline. Bazzana took advantage of making adjustments after his freshman season to increase his bat speed by more than 6 MPH (Average bat speed before Driveline: 69.8 MPH; After Driveline: 76.5 MPH).
Bazzana carried his successful 2023 college season to the Cape Cod League, earning MVP honors by hitting .375 AVG with 6 HR and 31 RBI. By pairing those contact skills and plus-bat speed, Bazzana has demonstrated an ability to swipe bases. We’ve been fooled before by former Oregon State second baseman who supposedly had good base running skills (Hi, Nick Madrigal), but Bazzana demonstrates plus-speed (60+ grade). The big issue is position. Not many think Bazzana can move over to shortstop, which limits him to either second base or left field.
Wake Forest Right-Handed Pitcher Chase Burns
2023 Stats: 18 G | 8 GS | 72.0 IP | 4.25 ERA | 114 K | 22 BB (Tennessee)
Last year, we saw the impact of the transfer portal when Paul Skenes left the Air Force for LSU. That move helped everyone involved as Skenes earned his way of being selected first overall and leading LSU to a National Championship. That could happen again as RHP Chase Burns leaves Tennessee for Wake Forest.
Burns was removed from his starting role during SEC play and pushed into the bullpen due to a lack of consistency. Based on reports from Knoxville, that decision caused Burns to enter the transfer portal even though he flourished in relief. Burns maxed out his velocity, consistently hitting triple digits.
That's where the reliever risk comes from for Burns. If Burns is to regain his 2022 form, which he was fantastic for Tennessee (2.91 ERA in 14 GS, 103 K to 25 BB), Wake Forest is an excellent destination. The Demon Deacons have built one of the best pitching labs and helped elevate Rhett Lowder to a Top 10 pick. If the lab can help correct Burns's consistency issues, he's the best arm in this class.
Florida LHP/1B/RF Jac Caglianone
2023 Hitting Stats: .322/.388/.735 | 33 HR 90 RBI | 17 BB | 58 K
2023 Pitching Stats: 18 GS | 4.34 ERA | 74.2 IP | 87 K | 55 BB
“Jactani” is the most interesting college player in the 2024 season. It’s rare to see a player able to hit 30+ home runs while throwing 97 miles per hour and taking on a full-season pitching workload. But that’s what Florida’s Jac Caglianone accomplished after being limited to DH duties while recovering from Tommy John surgery in 2022.
It is a spectrum of extremes for Caglianone. On the positive side, Caglianone is a 60+ grade power bat with a 70+ grade arm. That’s a rare combination and would be great in the right field, where the bat can play. However, with taking on a starter workload, Florida kept Caglianone at first base, making it difficult to gauge his ability in right field.
The big concerns are involving walks, both hitting and pitching. Caglianone hasn’t displayed good plate discipline, with a 5.3% BB rate in 2023. That’s not going to transfer well professionally. While Caglianone doesn’t show the ability to walk consistently, he does walk too many hitters at a 16.1% clip. Grading-wise, that’s a 30-grade plate discipline and 40-grade command.
So where does one place a 60-grade power / 30-grade plate discipline + 70-grade velocity / 40-grade command player? I could see many teams being in a “Wait and see” position with Caglianone. If he suddenly demonstrates better plate discipline, Caglianone will become one of the better college hitters in this class. If Caglianone improves his command, he could be a Top 5 college pitcher in this class.
Or Caglianone doesn’t improve either, and despite putting up crazy numbers in college, is more of a second-round target.
North Carolina Outfielder Vance Honeycutt
2023 Stats: .257/.418/.492 | 12 HR 43 RBI | 49 BB | 51 K | 19-for-23 stolen base attempts
Vance Honeycutt had a tremendous freshman campaign in 2022, hitting .296/.409/.672 with 25 home runs and 29 stolen bases. While he provided offensive fireworks for North Carolina, Honeycutt also provided many highlights with his defensive ability in center field. Honeycutt has tremendous range and is fearless of the outfield wall. An area of concern for Honeycutt was to cut down on his strikeout rate from 29.7% entering the 2023 season.
Whatever adjustments Honeycutt made at the plate did help cut down on strikeouts (20.4% K-rate), but it greatly impacted his overall numbers. In 50 games, Honeycutt hit .257/.418/.492 with 12 home runs and just seven doubles. Despite showing elite athleticism, Honeycutt’s poor performance has raised many questions about his hitting ability.
If Honeycutt can bounce back in a big way, he’s a for-sure Top 10 talent with his plus-athleticism and defensive ability. If Honeycutt can’t improve his hitting, he reminds me of Jud Fabian, who was selected in the second round in back-to-back drafts (2021 and 2022).
Iowa Right-Handed Pitcher Brody Brecht
2023 Stats: 17 G | 16 GS| 77.0 IP | 3.74 ERA | 109 K | 61 BB
While I think Chase Burns has the best arm, Iowa's Brody Brecht will challenge for that title. Making the transition into a starter in 2023, Brecht started hitting 101-mph with his four-seamer and a 90-mph slider. The type of pitching arsenal propelled Paul Skenes' draft stock.
However, Brecht has below-average command, walking 18.4% of the batters he faced while not facing elite competition pitching in the Big Ten. Theoretically, it should be easier for Brecht to cut down on his walk rate and convince scouts that he can be developed into a big-league starting pitcher.
If Brecht can't do that, he's a reliever profile that could fly through a team's farm system and reach the majors quickly. It's all about if Brecht can better harness his fastball.
