2023 White Sox Draft Recap: Shirley Leads Process Behind Well Rounded Class

The White Sox have added 20 more players to their farm system as their entire draft class is expected to sign professional contracts over the next few weeks. Director of amateur scouting Mike Shirley and his staff entered with a middle-of-the-pack bonus pool and seemingly made the most of their selections while hitting on a number of trends that have presented themselves over the past few cycles. With $9.5 million to spend on the totality of the class, the decision makers feel like they allocated their resources in a manner which should benefit the organization moving forward.

When asked to elaborate on what the team accomplished over the course of three days, the fourth year amateur scouting director raved about his staff while outlining the process.

“Security in the skill of some of the guys that we drafted on the first day”, said Shirley. “Taking some risk in places in regards to the financial allocation. Securing it with a plan. Left-handed hitters, guys who can control the strike zone, we’re always talking about bat control, command of pitchers like a steering wheel. We have a huge analysis department for metrics; player development people involved in the draft, everyone contributing to make sure that the 20 players are right. We believe in what our scouts are doing. You dedicate so much of your life. Passion and being committed to process. As a leader, I feel good about what our people do.”

The first round pick is important but the goal of the baseball draft is to add as much talent as possible under the restrictions presented with a club’s allocated bonus pool resources available. Under Shirley’s leadership, the White Sox have now selected one player from each of the four demographics in the first round after nabbing Mississippi’s Jacob Gonzalez at #15 overall. The 21-year-old is the first college position player selected by the franchise in the first round since Andrew Vaughn with the third overall pick in 2019.

The White Sox selected ten pitchers in the 2023 class. The class is made up of seven right handers and three left handers while the organization went the community college route four times. They also drafted ten hitters including two catchers and six of the hitters swing it from the left side. Similarly to 2022, the club only drafted one player from the prep ranks but he was a local product once again. Multiple players were selected who originally played in the midwest as well.

Taking The Best Player Available

In every professional sport, decision makers assert that the player ultimately selected was the best player on the draft board at the time. In a draft as good as this one, it was anticipated that the White Sox might be able to select the best college player that happened to be available with the 15th overall pick. Before the college baseball season started, Gonzalez was seen as a player who could go off the board in the first six or seven picks. The White Sox felt fortunate to get the player where they did.

At the conclusion of the draft’s third day, Shirley was asked if he was surprised that his club was able to select someone that he didn’t anticipate being available at the time. The answer confirmed their level of interest in their first rounder.

“I think Jacob Gonzalez is a real player that does so many great things,” Shirley said. “He was the freshman player of the year, won a national championship his sophomore year and was a first round draft pick his junior year. We wanted to pay him a significant amount of money out of high school as well. He’s from southern California, a baseball hotbed, and his dad is a high school baseball coach. He grew up around it. He walks more than he strikes out. I’m excited about what Jacob brings to the table.”

The Chicago White Sox have selected SS Jacob Gonzalez. LHH who will stick at the position where he is an AA defender. Present impact at the plate where his power is a tick above average. High-floor pick here from Chicago. pic.twitter.com/WaOYMdnUFa

— Peter Flaherty III (@PeterGFlaherty) July 10, 2023

Gonzalez noted that the White Sox were his best combine interview and he knew that the club was interested due to the amount of time they spent discussing and analyzing video of his swing during their meeting. The 6-2, 200 pounder immediately becomes one of the best prospects in their system and he should move fairly quickly through the minor leagues. Shirley referenced the organization’s time spent with the shortstop during the process as well.

The MLB combine has given us an avenue and a route to take a different outlook and look a little deeper with the players. We’re granted 30 minutes one-on-one with the player. We’re trying to use this as more of a personal touch to really dive into the player. Some players make this really easy. The warm personality and knowledge of a Jacob Gonzalez allows you to access that and have a conversation that’s real. We wanted to ask some hitting stuff and his thought process on how he approaches the game and how he describes his swing, the growth pattern as a way to get deeper into his thought process. He was engaged in that conversation. He’s a warm kid and we really like the kid. It was a great way for us to connect.

Mike Shirley

"Jacob Gonzalez is one of my favorite players in this Draft class." pic.twitter.com/ZJ8RfxldPZ

— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) July 10, 2023

Despite being a top 20 player in the draft class by every major publication, some are critical of his swing and below-average run grades. The swing is divisive due to Gonzalez’s hips and shoulders disconnecting in his stride. He also displays power to only the pull side and “steps in the bucket” during his finish. These are issues that the White Sox feel comfortable with at this point and while they also believe that he’s a shortstop. Regardless of position, staying on the infield dirt is a trait that offers value.

Shirley was asked about the uniqueness of Gonzalez’s swing and he didn’t seem overly concerned.

“He has elite eye-hand coordination, swing rates in the right zone, chase rate is right, doesn’t swing and miss a lot and doesn’t strike out (11% this year),” said Shirley. “It was impressive how he can touch the ball and get to contact. Some things we need to clean up in the direction with the stride but his ability to be in awkward positions at times and still get to contact and power is very unique. We feel like we’ll get him to stay in his legs a little bit more. This is a college guy with contact skills and zone management that we’re looking for plus we think we can get him to more power if he stays into his legs a bit more and our (player development) department will get him in the right spot.

“Jacob is an elite left-handed hitter. It’s bat control and he doesn’t swing and miss a lot. He controls the strike zone and we think the power will continue to evolve with him. We couldn’t be more excited to land him. SEC shortstop, when we started the season, Jacob Gonzalez was a top five pick. We felt we had to take him.”

Continuing on The Arms Race

The White Sox spent 12 selections on a pitching heavy draft class in 2022. They added ten more arms to the fold this year and Mike Shirley has preached how imperative it is to be correct in the arms race to add pitching to the organization. In the second round, the White Sox took on some risk by selecting Grant Taylor of LSU but the organization hasn’t been shy about gambling on upside in recent drafts. The 6-3, 230 pound righty ranked in the 80-100 range in regards to draft prospects for major publications. Joe Doyle of Future Stars Series did rank him at No. 59 overall however and noted that he was on track to be in his top 25 prior to the injury.

The @whitesox got a damn good one in @LSUbaseball RHP Grant Taylor. Thought Taylor could drop a little and end up back at #LSU in the NIL era. Now, he will definitely sign. Missed 2023, but was LSU's best arm in the fall outside of Skenes. Filthy fastball w/ nasty life.…

— Kendall Rogers (@KendallRogers) July 10, 2023

Taylor pitched in relief for LSU last season but was trending towards becoming a first rounder in a starting role for the Tigers in 2023. The 21-year-old was stellar in the Cape Cod League and throughout the fall prior to getting injured and undergoing Tommy John surgery this past February. Similarly to the thought process behind Peyton Pallette’s selection in the second round last year, the White Sox were willing to take a shot on the upside provided.

“We feel like we landed two first rounders tonight,” said Shirley. “He was a guy that we felt like we had to target. Unfortunately, Grant had surgery this February. There were times at LSU this fall where Grant was showing us first round ability. His skill set the last time we saw him pitch live in a game, it was a fastball 94-98 mph, two breaking balls, it’s a power curveball, slider and a cutter.

“He has the ability to manipulate breaking balls and that gives him the capacity to be a frontline guy. He’s been a target of ours. We feel ecstatic to land him in the second round and we love the person, the makeup, his comprehension of how he uses his stuff. Let’s be frank, there was a night in the fall where he and Paul Skenes were going toe-to-toe in an intra-squad and it was quite impressive.”

The Chicago White Sox have selected RHP Grant Taylor. Missed the entire 2023 season rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, but was the most impressive arm I saw last summer on the Cape. FB sat in the 93-95 mph range and showed a plus CB. Starter’s pitch mix. pic.twitter.com/4GbBMpcM44

— Peter Flaherty III (@PeterGFlaherty) July 10, 2023

In regards to questions about the surgery, Shirley said that, “his rehab is going tremendously well. We had a medical staff dive into that and we understand the rehab process.”

The amateur scouting director also discussed the nature of arm injuries in general for pitchers throughout the sport.

“The injuries are coming on the pitching front,” he said. “If you throw hard, there’s a thought process in this game that TJ may be coming, and these guys arms are just moving ridiculously fast these days. It’s why you try to build in breaks with these guy’s structural management and every day maintenance. The acceleration of these arms are dangerous and we’re so much more adept and more prepared to handle the rehab system. We felt comfortable with the process at this point.”

Shirley noted that area scout Warren Hughes had been tracking Taylor since high school but he also made it very clear that they wouldn’t have gotten this player had he pitched this season.

“The issue we had is if he gets to spring, he probably doesn’t get to us,” Shirley continued. “He goes in the first round and we probably don’t get our hands on him. This is a way for us to take a bump in the road, an injury, and be able to select him in the second round and get a first round piece out of it, we feel like.”

Some highlights of #WhiteSox third rounder Seth Keener. https://t.co/mMT8UHqeEE

— James Fox (@JamesFox917) July 11, 2023

The White Sox used their third rounder on another right hander who was stellar on the cape last year. After pitching mostly out of Wake Forest’s bullpen in recent years, Seth Keener posted a 0.87 WHIP this season with a three pitch mix that points to future success as a starter in professional ball. He could move quickly through the system and the organization believes that they’ve drafted another future starter with plenty of upside.

Look at what’s going on at Wake Forest here. They have the seventh pick overall in their rotation, they have two possible high picks and they have a guy projected to be a first rounder that got hurt so the volume of what’s happening at Wake pushed him to the bullpen. Keener got a chance to become a starter midway through the season and he really ran with it and got some starts in the College World Series. We think this is now stuff with some development that is left in him, innings load, work level is right, it’s a three pitch mix. The breaking ball is plus, he gets chase on it with a heater at the top of the zone and it’s a good delivery. We’re really excited about the starter presentation he gave us.

Mike Shirley

9-269. White Sox: Jake Peppers, RHP, Jacksonville St — power low-slot reliever w/ starter traits, pwr mid 90's FB up to 99, gyro SL flashes abv-avg, firm CH w/ fade, arsenal growth w/ projection build for starter dev and power relief outlook

— Taylor Blake Ward (@TaylorBlakeWard) July 10, 2023

Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB Pipeline named Jake Peppers as the best ninth round pick overall. The White Sox selected the 6-3, 160 pounder late on day two and he was listed as the No. 187 overall prospect for the publication. His three pitch mix should project him to the rotation in the future but relief remains a solid fallback option for a selection at this stage. He was taken out of Jacksonville State and throws his fastball in the 93-95 mph range consistently and touches 98.

Big 12 Pitcher of the Year ✔️@lucas_gordon has been selected by the White Sox with the 179th pick in the 6th round.

— Sox On 35th (@SoxOn35th) July 10, 2023

In the sixth round, the White Sox saved some money by selecting University of Texas southpaw Lucas Gordon. He was a weekend starter for the Longhorns and mixes his fastball in the 88-91 mph range with a plus changeup.

“We absolutely see him as a starter,” Shirley said following day two of the draft. “It’s a lot of strikes, it’s a plus changeup, he was a Friday starter in the Big 12. He can maneuver his fastball, location and command, uses a breaking ball in and off the plate. He has great makeup and he competes.”

One of the most interesting picks in the draft class was the 12th round selection. The White Sox took right hander Mathias LaCombe on day three and Baseball America ranked the 21-year-old as the 375th best prospect in the class.

Hailing from Bordeaux, France, the righty has aspirations to be the first French-born player to the big leagues. At Cochise College this spring, the 6-2, 185 pounder showed a fastball into the mid 90’s and he struck out 97 with 14 walks in just 67.1 innings pitched. LaCombe pitched for France in the World Baseball Classic.

“He was at Cochise Junior College near the Mexico border and he’s not short on talent,” Shirley said. “We’re talking about a guy who was 93-95 with a real breaking ball and there’s mechanical things that you know we’re going to make better in his delivery. He touches some metric points in pitch design that we really like. This guy is a real prize and a piece of the puzzle and we invested some funds in him because we believe in him. This was John Kazanas’ guy. This was the guy that he wanted to sign, the guy he was convicted in. He has a bunch of energy, loves to pitch and we think there’s untapped potential here as well.”

Kazanas is a longtime scout in Arizona and he’s originally credited with finding southpaw Mark Buehrle. Other examples of Kazanas picks are Tanner Banks, who is in the big leagues currently, and Shane Murphy (15th rounder last year) who has had success in Low-A this year.

The White Sox popped another one of his guys in the 18th round with Anthony Imhoff out of Pima Junior College. Kazanas told FutureSox that “the player development staff will improve his delivery and extension which should cause an uptick in stuff.”  The 6-7 southpaw throws his fastball in the 92 mph range and the curveball shows some shape.

Garrett Wright was a reliever at Texas Christian University and the White Sox grabbed him in the 20th round. The righty was ranked at #392 overall by Joe Doyle of the Future Stars Series. He’s a bullpen guy with huge stuff displaying a fastball in the 98 mph range with a nasty gyro tilt slider to compliment it. He could move very quickly in a relief role. Zach Franklin (10th round) out of Missouri and Carlton Perkins (Cowley Community College-Kansas) round out the club’s draft class on the pitching side.

Attacking Prep Players

The White Sox took a big swing in the seventh round by selecting George Wolkow out of Downers Grove North High School in Chicago’s western suburbs. The 6-7, 240 pounder looked like a potential top 50 pick in the 2024 class but he reclassified to this year and won’t turn 18 until January. The left-handed hitter has shown massive raw power to all fields but there’s lots of swing and miss in his game while the swing decisions will be an area of focus. There were some struggles on the showcase circuit and in the Northwoods League but the White Sox witnessed his Area Codes success up close.

Big, big get for the White Sox in the 7th. Local OF/1B George Wolkow. Extremely young, re-classified from 2024. Huge power. Really growing into his 6'7" frame over the last 12 months. Had heard Chicago was in on him in the 2nd/3rd. Gets to stay home. Hope he signs.

— Joe Doyle (@JoeDoyleMiLB) July 10, 2023

“This goes back to a relationship,” said Shirley. “It goes back to our work covering the backyard. It’s important to us. It’s important to the fanbase. We know the prospects here locally. George is someone who reclassified. He should’ve been in the 2024 class. He’s an early graduate from high school, he’s a local kid, it’s a significant ceiling. This is big time power, this is big time athlete. We feel like we’re only tapping the surface of what he may become.

“The reason he goes where he goes is we wanted to try and attack him but we were patient and luckily we were able to strike a deal and a huge part of the process is the pool allocation and when you choose to attack. We got some savings, we cut some deals, but didn’t sacrifice talent as we cut some deals and that makes it possible to land George Wolkow.”

White Sox draft 6-7 high school slugger George Wolkow. He should end up with 70, maybe 80 raw power. That power comes with strikeouts, but an intriguing one for a 7th-round pick. https://t.co/PyBGsPjyLD

— Ben Badler (@BenBadler) July 10, 2023

Wolkow is a significant addition in the seventh round even though he’ll likely be paid late second round money. The 17-year-old has been compared to recent Yankees first rounder Spencer Jones and big leaguer Joey Gallo. He could end up as a two-year rookie ball guy to start his career but the White Sox feel like the ceiling is significant. He will start his career as an outfielder in the Arizona Complex League but the bat remains the priority at first. Read more about Wolkow and others in Jim Margalus’ day two draft recap.

“We like the athlete,” said Shirley. “JJ Lally (White Sox area scout) feels like George could probably play third base as well. The plan at this point is to make sure the bat and his offensive weapons are secure. Putting him in the outfield right now might be the best portfolio play for us.”

Shirley noted that the player is just ready to start his professional career and the background work that the club did throughout the process informed their thinking in regards to the slugger being attainable at this stage.

George Wolkow hit a MOONSHOT to put the @gbrockers one away from tying the game🔥 pic.twitter.com/Te942hRHv2

— Northwoods League Baseball (@NWLbaseball) July 8, 2023

There will be a long development curve for George Wolkow but he immediately becomes one of the most interesting prospects in the White Sox’s system. There are some issues in the 17-year-old’s game but power is the carrying tool.

“The power is unbelievable,” Shirley said. “At the combine, he was throwing the ball 100 mph, hitting balls around 117 mph; it’s an elite type of force production related to how his body creates force. The power is significant. Remember, he’s 17-years-old, 6-7, 240 pounds, his body is still maturing. It could be 3-4 years still before the body tightens up and coordinates itself. It gives you a window to grow him into the professional baseball arena. George has significant tools. The hit tool will only grow. The bet is that this guy gets to power and hit homers.”

Christian Oppor was the top ranked high school pitcher out of Wisconsin in 2022. The White Sox arranged a deal with the young southpaw to select him in the 11th round last year but the Oakland Athletics took him instead. They weren’t able to sign him as a draft and follow and the lefty attended Gulf Coast Community College this season in advance of being selected in the fifth round last weekend. He’s technically not a prep selection but it’s close to the same thing in regards to upside on day two for the White Sox.

“We thought we had him last year in the 11th round,” said Shirley. “He was going to be our pick. I thought we had a deal done. He went one pick in front of us where Oakland took him. We were prepared and landed Jacob Burke instead. We like Christian Oppor. He’s a left-handed athlete, 95-97, 98, earlier in the year, there is so much upside to him, there is present stuff and it’s a plus athlete. He’s maturing. This is another great win for us.”

White Sox pick @GCSCbaseball LHP Christian Oppor in the 5th, here’s our look from early in the spring. Big arm talent, everything is still quite raw but could be a triple digit lefty reliever. #PGJC pic.twitter.com/hQGVEWXFbL

— Brian Sakowski (@Sakowski_GoDuke) July 10, 2023

The 6-2, 175 pound lefty just oozes athleticism and projection. He’s a former basketball player and while he’s extremly raw on the mound with very inconsistent secondary offerings, the upside in the fifth round is well worth taking a shot on. He likely heads to Arizona and could spend two seasons in rookie ball. The midwest is important to the White Sox and they landed kids from Illinois and Wisconsin on likely over-slot bonuses. An Iowa kid is a prominent member of the 2023 draft class as well.

Lefty Bats and College Performers

Adding left-handed hitters was a priority for the White Sox and they added some in addition to Jacob Gonzalez and George Wolkow. Catching has been an area of need for the White Sox and former Ole Miss backstop Calvin Harris immediately becomes the best one in the system. The 6-0, 215 pounder has played in the outfield before as well. Scouting reports have noted a sound left-handed swing with hard contact and power to all fields. He hits too many ground balls and there are some mixed reviews defensively but the White Sox were excited to land the former Iowa prep star when they did.

“We had some guys in our room that wanted to take him in the second round so we were lucky to land him in the fourth,” said Shirley. “We’ve been on him since high school. It’s a left-handed bat, it’s power and the defense has always been right. He’s a leader, make up qualities will help the staff grow. He’s going to handle a staff. He’s a tough kid. He’s a kind kid but he holds people accountable. Leadership, left-handed bat, the power. We think we’ve landed a winner there.”

White Sox 4th round pick Calvin Harris, C, Ole Miss pic.twitter.com/AbIqApxT5F

— Jimmy (@FlynnJimmy__) July 10, 2023

Stanford outfielder Eddie Park was ranked as the No. 196 overall player at Baseball America and No. 255 overall according to Joe Doyle of Future Stars Series. Park has done nothing but hit in college and he’s earned some comparisons to Guardians’ outfielder Steven Kwan. The left-handed hitter slashed .331/.405/.485 with a nearly 10% walk rate in the PAC 12. The 6-1 outfielder likely projects in left field but he does possess a plus hit tool with above-average speed. Park should get plenty of playing time in the minors and there could be a big league future here.

8-239. White Sox: Eddie Park, OF, Stanford — contact-focused CF w/ premium defensive upside, compact LH cut w/ quick hands sprays ball w/ highly disciplined approach w/ rare s/m though blw-avg pwr limits impact potential, abv-avg speed plays in CF w/ long term/plus actions

— Taylor Blake Ward (@TaylorBlakeWard) July 10, 2023

The 11th round is always an interesting spot for clubs in the draft. It’s generally an important pick and Oregon’s Rikuu Nishida is definitely that for the White Sox. He was ranked No. 479 overall according to Baseball America with Joe Doyle slotting him at No. 350. The 5-6 energizer profiles at second base and he’s one of the best contact hitters from the college crop. He has plenty of wood bat experience and Cape success. There isn’t power in the profile but he’s a plus runner who hit .312/.394/.443 with 25 stolen bases last season.

The Chicago White Sox (11th round) selected 2B/OF Rikuu Nishida. Maybe the most fun player to watch in all of college baseball. After an All-Star summer on the Cape, he hit .312 (with wood) this spring with 25 SB. Elite bat-to-ball skills, plus runner. pic.twitter.com/LKeCHPArEY

— Peter Flaherty III (@PeterGFlaherty) July 11, 2023

“It’s some kind of unique,” Shirley said about Nishida. “Bat control skill, the speed, the presentation visually, visually appealing for the fan. You just can’t take your eyes off the guy when he’s on the field. That alone and his skillset and talent, it’s real. We thought he was important enough to take in the 11th round because he’s going to get on base, steal bases, he bunts, he slashes, he can hit, we have an index of analysis from the Cape Cod last year. At Oregon this year, he takes two bats into the on deck circle, one metal, one wood and then makes a choice.”

Caden Connor is another lefty bat from California State Fullerton. He doesn’t have much power but he ranked on the Baseball America 500. Four right handed hitters were added to the mix as well and you can learn more about them in Jim Margalus’ day three recap at SoxMachine.

Ryan Galanie is a power hitting third baseman that was ready to transfer to Tennessee. Edrick Felix is a shortstop with Florida Gulf Coast’s home run record. Weston Eberly is a catcher that was slated to graduate transfer to Georgia and Mikey Kane is a utility type from Oregon State who rounds out the class.

Colson Montgomery is the top prospect in the White Sox’s system and he’s steadily climbing the lists at major publications. The White Sox believe that he’s their future shortstop but Shirley discussed the process of never having too many good players in regards to Jacob Gonzalez and Montgomery playing together.

“You’re trying to keep adding good players to this organization,” he said. “You keep adding left-handed bats, the versatility, so talented, can play in the middle of the field, it gives your roster flexibility. They have the education and aptitude to fit at other positions if needed, if the bats work and function like we believe they are, they’re going to fit on the field together.”