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Chicago White Sox top 10 prospects for 2019

By Benjamin Chase

BIRMINGHAM, AL - JUNE 19: Birmingham Barons Outfielder Eloy Jimenez looks on during the 2018 Southern League All-Star Game. The South All-Stars defeated the North All-Stars by the score of 9-5 at Regions Field in Birmingham, Alabama. (Photo by Michael Wade/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
BIRMINGHAM, AL - JUNE 19: Birmingham Barons Outfielder Eloy Jimenez looks on during the 2018 Southern League All-Star Game. The South All-Stars defeated the North All-Stars by the score of 9-5 at Regions Field in Birmingham, Alabama. (Photo by Michael Wade/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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Chicago White Sox
Omaha, NE – JUNE 26: Infielder Nick Madrigal #3 of the Oregon State Beavers chases after a chopper through the infield in the fifth inning against the Arkansas Razorbacks during game one of the College World Series Championship Series on June 26, 2018 at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images) /

5. Nick Madrigal, IF

Birthday: 3/5/1997 (21)
Acquired: Draft, 1st round, 2018
Level(s): AZL White Sox, low-A Kannapolis, high-A Winston-Salem
Statistics: .303/.353/.348, 43 G, 173 PA, 7 2B, 8 SB, 4% BB, 2.9% K

One of the most gifted players with a bat in his hand that many scouts report seeing since Tony Gwynn, Nick Madrigal was one of the most intriguing players in the 2018 draft. The Chicago White Sox answered plenty of questions by taking him 4th overall.

Madrigal’s biggest concern coming out of college was his position. He’s got the natural range and hands to handle short, but he would be elite defensively at second base, where he played alongside one of the elite shortstops in college baseball in 2018.

Offensively, Madrigal will not ever hit for big power, but he has incredible control of his bat, so to see that he hit .300+ in his pro debut, in spite of moving all the way up to high-A, was no surprise. What was incredibly impressive was his strikeout rate. That number above is not a misprint. Madrigal struck out in less than 3% of his plate appearances in his pro debut. While that number is not to be expected going forward, he does have some of the best bat control I’ve watched of any minor league player.

While other players may be able to hit the ball with more authority with their contact, Madrigal is the type of guy who will have 7-12 home runs max while spraying the ball throughout the field and using high-level instincts to move around the bases on hits – a perfect guy at the top of the lineup.

Most likely, the White Sox will open Madrigal in high-A, but a good showing in spring ball could open him in the upper minors in his first full professional season.

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