White Sox Prospect Season Recap: No. 21, Aldrin Batista

The 2024 season for the Chicago White Sox was one of the worst in modern day baseball history. They were 41-121 and the worst team in the league by far. The bright spots were few and far between, as the team was very hard to watch for many White Sox fans. 

However, down on the farm, the White Sox have some very intriguing players that can give fans a glimmer of hope for the future. We will be recapping the seasons of some of the best prospects in the White Sox system, starting from #30 and going in order to #1 as MLB Pipeline has them ranked. As you’ll see, there are some very intriguing prospects that can help bring the White Sox back to relevance.

Ranked at 21 on the White Sox top 30 prospect list is starting pitcher Aldrin Batista. Batista is one of the most underrated prospects on this list, as he had one of the best seasons out of the starting pitchers on this list. 

Batista was acquired by the White Sox from the Los Angels Dodgers after the trade deadline last season in exchange for international bonus pool money. This turned out to be a fantastic trade for the White Sox, as Batista has been outstanding since joining the White Sox organization. 

In five games with the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers in 2023, Batista had a 2.66 ERA over 23.2 innings. He added 21 strikeouts, had a 1.06 WHIP, and hitters only hit .209 off him.  This was a great start to Batista’s career with the White Sox organization. 

In 2024, Batista would start the season with the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers, as he ended up starting 17 games for them. In 84.2 innings, Batista struck out 87 batters, en route to a 3.51 ERA. He had a solid .223 batting average against, and a 1.25 WHIP. The White Sox took notice of his solid performance and promoted him to Winston-Salem to end the year. 

In five starts for the Dash, Batista threw 26 innings. In those innings, he struck out 29 batters, while only walking six, an improvement from Kannapolis. He also held batters to an impressive .176 average and had a fantastic .85 WHIP. Batista pitched as well as one could after a promotion and is clearly on the White Sox radar.   

It is likely that Batista will start the 2025 season with the Dash, as he only pitched in five games for them. If he continues to pitch like he has there, he won’t be there much longer, as he will be well overdue for a promotion to AA. 

Batista will be 21 when the season starts and will turn 22 after a few months. He is still a very young pitcher, but will continue to fly through the organization if he pitches like he has. By this time next year, he will likely be in the top half of the White Sox prospects.