Tag / Danny Goodwin

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With The First Pick In The 2026 Draft

To the surprise of nearly no one, the White Sox selected UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky with the top overall pick of the 2026 MLB draft.  Cholowsky, the consensus preseason pick both at the draft lottery in December and the start of the college baseball season in February, had an ok, but not outstanding junior season, enabling prep shortstop Grady Emerson and Georgia Tech catcher Vahn Lackey to enter into the conversation.  Cholowsky reportedly agreed to sign under slot, which is just north of $11.3 million, which gave the team room to select Landon Thome, son of Hall of Famer Jim Thome, with the competitive balance pick they acquired yesterday from the Pirates in the Jacob Gonzalez trade.

Cholowsky becomes the third overall top pick by the White Sox, following Danny Goodwin in 1971 and Harold Baines in 1977.  Hopefully his career ends up closed to the later than the former.

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Everything’s Coming Up Jerry

For the first time since 1977, the White Sox will have the top overall pick in next July’s MLB draft.  Despite having the second worst record in baseball in 2025, the White Sox entered last night’s draft lottery with the best chance at the #1 pick, as the Rockies were ineligible for a top-nine pick due to consecutive years picking in the lottery.  Ironically, that same rule is what stuck the White Sox with the 10th pick in this year’s draft, despite finishing last year with the most losses in the history of the league.

This will be the third time the White Sox have had the overall #1 pick in the draft.  In 1971, they selected Danny Goodwin, a catcher out of Peoria High School.  In typical White Sox fashion, they lowballed him and he chose to go to college instead, becoming the first top pick to not sign.  Things went a little better in 1977, when they selected Harold Baines with the top pick.  He would, of course, eventually have his number retired by the team and be elected to the Hall of Fame.  Not to put any pressure on whoever the team ends up selecting come July.