4 Draft Prospects the White Sox Should Consider Taking With the 5th Overall Pick

The 2024 Chicago White Sox are the epitome of a bad baseball team.

One day, pitchers give up a game, the next day, a stagnant offense gives the opposition a win. The Sox just can’t seem to get it right. There have been some improvements, however, recently and the White Sox seem at least a little better. But they still have a long way to go.

The White Sox, who had one of the worst minor league systems in the entire league, can improve their ever-improving minor league system with a good draft this year. There are a number of prospects the White Sox might want to take with the 5th overall pick in the draft.

One prospect they might not want to consider is Joe Caglianone.

Caglianone is a player who probably won’t be a top-five pick, or at least someone the White Sox should be interested in, so maybe they’ll avoid him. Another team will probably take him in the first round, which might be too early to take him, but the White Sox should avoid him.

One guy who is of interest is outfielder Braden Montgomery.

If the White Sox trade Luis Robert Jr. before the trade deadline, they’re going to be short on depth in the outfield. They have a few prospects in their draft system that could be useful, but they need to start developing more talent now.

That’s where Montgomery comes in. Montgomery’s biggest drawback is his injury history, but overall he can hit both ways and has solid arm strength.

Another potential prospect the White Sox could be interested in is left-handed pitcher Hagen Smith.

Smith underwent Tommy John surgery in high school, but he came back strong to become one of the top pitchers in this year’s draft. He attended the University of Arkansas and is ready to make the jump to the minor leagues and eventually the big leagues. He may be ready to join the big leagues sooner than some think.

The White Sox need some hitting help and their system has some decent hitters, but it could always use more. With the fifth overall pick, they should have plenty of quality hitting talent at their disposal.

One player in particular stands out from the rest: West Virginia’s JJ Wetherholt.

Wetherholt might be the best hitting prospect in this year’s draft. He has power and a strong desire to succeed. He would give the Sox another left-handed hitter and could make the jump to the major leagues quickly.

The draft won’t be a quick fix for the White Sox’s problems. Players selected in the draft are rarely ready to make it to the big leagues in their first year. But at fifth overall, the White Sox are sure to find someone who can fill a need and give them a player who might be able to break into the league quickly. They’ll want that especially as they’re in the midst of a rebuild.