Despite the fact the White Sox have yet to win a Spring Training game, there a few things that White Sox fans can get excited about. One of those things was featured in yesterday's game, as the future top of the rotation for the White Sox was on display in their 3-1 loss to the San Diego Padres.
The White Sox sent out Hagen Smith and Noah Schultz, their top two prospects, for an inning each yesterday, and the results were better than we could have possibly expected.
Noah Schultz got a crack at the fifth inning, where he had a nice eight-pitch inning.
Noah Schultz is one of the best pitching prospects in the game.
— Baseball America (@BaseballAmerica) February 27, 2025
He needed just eight pitches to work around one hit over an inning of work on Wednesday ... and his dad got to call his first spring out(s)🥹
(🎥 @CHSN_WhiteSox)pic.twitter.com/A4oPEuvxZV
While his outing wasn't that eventful, he was able to mow through the inning with no issues, which is a good sign for a 21 year old in major league Spring Training. He will continue to develop in AA, with a likely promotion to AAA at some point this year if he continues to dominate AA.
Next up is Hagen Smith, who manned the 6th inning for the White Sox. While he did give up one infield hit and walked Gavin Sheets, his stuff was extremely impressive, as he struck out three batters.
Hagen Smith = filthy 🤮
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) February 26, 2025
The @WhiteSox 2024 first-rounder (No. 5 overall pick) and MLB's second-ranked LHP prospect strikes out three batters and touches 98 mph in his first inning of the spring. pic.twitter.com/4LpihF0xQJ
Smith's stuff looked absolutely disgusting, as his slider looks like it has the chance to be one of the better pitches in the major leagues. On top of that, he was lighting up the radar gun, as he hit 98 with his fastball in February, which is a fantastic sign.
If that wasn't impressive enough, his strikeouts were no slouches, as he struck out Leodalis De Vries, Ethan Salas, and Connor Joe. De Vries and Salas are both highly touted top-100 prospects and Joe is a major leaguer. This is a fantastic sign and Smith should fly through the White Sox system.
Don't be surprised if you see Smith make his major league debut to end the year, as he has the potential to get to the majors leagues quicker than your average prospect.
If that wasn't enough, Sean Burke also had a very nice outing for the White Sox, as he pitched two innings, giving up one unearned run, while striking out two. His curveball looked absolutely filthy and he seems to be in the lead to grab one of the last rotation spots.
Sean Burke gets Jackson Merrill on a filthy curve 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/iWEOOPCh9i
— White Sox on CHSN (@CHSN_WhiteSox) February 26, 2025
While the White Sox will need to continue addressing their lineup, we can't say the same about their rotation, as they have a ton of guys that look like they will be very good major leaguers.
