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This week on Sox Machine: Mock drafts introduce uncertainty at No. 1
Ahoy!
The UCLA Bruins have been great this season, ranked No. 1 in the country and undefeated in Big Ten play. But Roch Cholowsky has merely been good, which has introduced some doubt as to which player the White Sox will select at No. 1 in the upcoming MLB draft this July.
Some of it can merely be dismissed as a leverage ploy, as it makes sense for the White Sox to make other options known as they discuss potential bonus amounts with their first pick, and figure out the kind of money left for picks down the line. Still, college bats were supposed to be the strength of this year's class, and instead prep infielders are becoming a bigger part of the top 10, and some of the second-guessing is materializing in mock drafts from national outlets. It's been one year since a White Sox fan became pope, but while there's plenty of smoke here, but none of it is white.
Josh Nelson has been following this potential all spring, and he explores this development in his latest MLB Draft Report, as you'll see below. You'll also see a couple of recent stories from James Fegan, including one about Sean Burke, who toes the rubber as the White Sox open a challenging three-series homestand against the Mariners tonight, with three-game sets against the Royals and Cubs to follow.
As always, we couldn't provide this kind of coverage without your support, which has made 20 years of Sox Machine possible. Tickets are now on sale for our anniversary celebration at Rate Field in August, so you're cordially invited to watch the White Sox with us, regardless of the shape they're in after the All-Star break.
-Jim
FEATURED STORY
Prep shortstop Grady Emerson
By JOSH NELSON
Keith Law’s first 2026 MLB mock draft for The Athletic projects the Chicago White Sox to select Grady Emerson first overall. The pick is bold, but early signals are uncertain, and the White Sox remain linked to Emerson and Jacob Lombard through persistent industry chatter. In his Q&A chat, Law wrote that Roch Cholowsky is still his No. 1 prospect and he wouldn't take either Emerson or Lombard over the top three college players (Cholowsky, Vahn Lackey, and Jackson Flora).
If you read last week’s 2026 MLB Draft Report, I wrote about The Ceiling Play as a possible reason for Bob Nightengale’s column notes regarding the White Sox’s uncertainty about Cholowsky as the first overall pick. To gather further insight, I’ve spent the past few weeks watching top Illinois prep players in action, taking photos and videos with MLB scouts, and eavesdropping on their conversations.
The number of MLB scouts lamenting this year’s college hitter class is eye-opening. In Tuesday’s game at Lyons Township, where James Fegan tagged along with me, we both heard a scout behind us say this year’s college class is “mid.” Listen to the MLB Pipeline Podcast with Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo, and they are starting to question what we are watching this college season.
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THIS WEEK'S EXCLUSIVE FEATURES
James loves talking pitching, whether he's profiling pitchers, or figuring out a fresh way to talk about the White Sox's most exciting hitter.
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