The Chicago White Sox farm system hasn’t quite been highly regarded over the past few years. Following the graduation of much of the current White Sox roster, the system fell to being one of the worst in the league.
Oscar Colás has been one of the most exciting players in the system over the past two seasons and has now joined the big league team. While he’s set to graduate from the prospect rankings in the near future, two other White Sox prospects are quickly climbing up the charts.
Just Baseball released its updated Top 100 Prospects List last week and the top two prospects in the system reached their highest rankings to date. Colson Montgomery checked in as the 21st prospect in baseball while Bryan Ramos shot up the list at No. 30.
Montgomery has been a highly-touted prospect since being selected in the first round of the 2021 draft while Ramos has been a huge riser as he’s torn up the minor leagues. These two prospects are leading the way for a new wave of White Sox prospects and the expectations for them are higher than ever right now.
Colson Montgomery
The upside when it comes to Montgomery is sky high with his 6-foot-4 frame and plenty of room to add strength and power still while playing a premium position.
The shortstop is coming off a season where he dominated pitching at the Low-A and High-A levels before joining Project Birmingham.
The signs he showed throughout the year were extremely encouraging and a large reason for him being ranked all the way to 21 on the list. His plate approach is excellent for a hitter of his age and it shows via his 13% walk rate across the three levels he played at last season.
Furthermore, as mentioned in the breakdown on Just Baseball’s list, Montgomery posted an extraordinary 89% zone contact rate which further builds the impression of a bat that could be huge for the White Sox. He rarely misses pitches to hit in the zone and has the patience necessary to utilize his power to the fullest extent. He’s regularly able to drive the ball to his pull side with an increasing ability to spray it all over the field.
Montgomery has not only impressed with the bat but with arm strength in the field as well. He’s proven to have an above-average arm that could survive at shortstop even with somewhat limited range. He could become an option at third base with increased size as he ages.
Bryan Ramos
One of the biggest risers on the entire Top 100 List was Bryan Ramos. The 21-year-old broke out in High-A last season following a solid year in Low-A the year prior. He was eventually brought up to Double-A like Montgomery at the end of the season.
Ramos improved his chase rate and decreased his strikeout rate while facing better pitching than the year prior. His swing has continued to develop and his raw power is up there with the best prospects as he homered 22 times across 120 games. That comes in large part due to an elite 104 mph exit velocity that ranked in the 90th percentile.
As mentioned in the list, Ramos improved greatly defensively last season. His range and footwork have gotten much better as he’s been able to utilize his well-above-average arm strength to become a good defender at third. He’s also worked over at second base where he’s oversized but has been shown that he’s capable of playing there as well.
The improvements made last year have Ramos well-positioned to continue his growth and ascension through the organization. He’s one of the more well-rounded players in the minor leagues and his ability to play multiple positions with comfort will give him the chance to reach the White as soon as next year.
Would be nice if either of them was playing. It’s like they’re already on the major league squad!
Project Birmingham, which I believe was some sort of hovercraft.
For a 26th rated system, to have two players anybody thinks is top 30 is pretty miraculous. The rest of their system sure doesn’t offer much hope, obviously.