Opening Day will be here before you know it!
Seventy-three days from now, the Chicago White Sox will play the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field to kick off another season where the Pale Hose are expected to lose 90 or more games. As dour as that sounds, 90 losses actually would be progress considering the franchise has a three-year streak of losing over 100 games.
That horrific stretch of losing also includes the worst season ever in the 162-game era, an improbable and record-setting 121 games
in 2024!
But let’s not dwell on that historically awful season.
Instead, the focus for this season will be on the young core that emerged from the 2025 season, making enough internal improvement for the franchise to turn the corner.
There is hope of better days to come, with how well youngsters such as Colson Montgomery, Kyle Teel, Edgar Quero, Chase Meidroth, Shane Smith, Mike Vasil, Jordan Leasure and Grant Taylor played in 2025. However, there are a lot of hurdles to clear before that group can be certified as a winning core. Plus, they need another wave of prospect talent to be infused as 2026 goes along, as highly-regarded prospects such as Braden Montgomery, Noah Schultz, Hagen Smith, Tanner McDougal and Sam Antonacci will likely be debuting at some point in 2026.
The rookies will need time to get acclimated to the big-league game. Plus, Munetaka Murakami and Everson Pereira (or Jarred Kelenic) will be given a runway to see if they can take off and become impact players.
That all adds up to another season where the club will need to be evaluated on criteria beyond mere wins and losses. That is why 2026 is going to be about individual improvement, rather than climbing in the standings.
However, it would be nice if the White Sox blow past some of the low over/under lines being set on this year’s win total. The Pale Hose making a 10- to 15-game jump in the win column would show that this rebuilding is trending in the right direction.
The White Sox winning, say, four to six more games than the 60 in 2025 would serve as proof that the young roster did not make the improvement needed to start thinking about contending in 2027 or 2028. A 65-win season in 2026 would be a major disappointment.
When I look at what the Opening Day roster could look like if the season started today, more moves are needed this offseason to avoid such disappointment. Internal improvement can only carry this team so far. Finishing touches on the supporting cast are essential to help this in the margins add a few more wins.
There are not a lot of options for a left-handed bat off the bench. Another starting pitcher and a few more relievers would be nice to add. It could not hurt to give Brooks Baldwin a platoon partner in right field.
Note: This roster prediction does not factor in future Spring Training performances, as a hot streak or slump can impact who makes the Opening Day roster. Instead, this is going off of past trends, and what front office members have said about players who have been added will fill.
Starting Pitchers
Shane Smith (RHP)
Anthony Kay (LHP)
Davis Martin (RHP)
Sean Newcomb (LHP)
Sean Burke (RHP)
Smith should end up as the best Rule 5 pick the White Sox ever made, as he had an All-Star season in 2025. His stuff gives him ace potential, but now he must take the next step. Right now, Smith amazing stuff makes him a “dude.” But becoming an ace means Smith can shut down lineups over an entire season. Smith’s midseason endurance issue showed he must still clear the bar of being able to lock down opposing batting orders April-August — not just April through the first part of June, and then needing an IL stint to recharge and finish the season strong.
Kay was added in the offseason after rebuilding the hope that he could be a big-leaguer by pitching well in Japan. Martin was solid in 2025, his first full season pitching in the majors. Those three are penciled in for the first three spots in the rotation.
There will be a competition for the final two starters, however. Newcomb was signed recently after throwing well in relief for the Athletics. The organization is going to give him a chance to start despite not being effective in that role for Boston in 2025. He was eventually designated for assignment and acquired by the A’s, where he thrived in relief. Unless another starter is added in free agency, Newcomb’s experience and improved stuff should beat out Jonathan Cannon and Duncan Davitt.
Burke was last year’s Opening Day starter, but experienced an inconsistent 2025. However, his stuff can miss bats more than Cannon and Davitt. Plus, when he returned from an in-season demotion, Burke brought with him increased velocity. If he can show better command, he should beat out Cannon and Davitt for a spot in the rotation.
It is doubtful that highly touted pitching prospects such as Schultz, Smith, and McDougal make the Opening Day roster. Schultz and Hagen must bounce back from an uneven 2025 season in the minors. McDougal has had just one season as a can’t-miss prospect, and as such will almost have to start the year in the minors.
Bullpen
Grant Taylor (RHP)
Mike Vasil (RHP)
Jordan Leasure (RHP)
Chris Murphy (LHP)
Tyler Gilbert (LHP)
Brandon Eisert (LHP)
Jedixson Paez (RHP)
Alexander Alberto (RHP)
Vasil was another gem the White Sox found out of the Rule 5 draft …. indirectly, at least, as the Sox claimed him off of waivers after Tampa Bay did not think he was worthy of making its roster.
Vasil was superb in every role out of the bullpen. Taylor and Leasure were inconsistent in high-leverage situations, but they finished 2025 strong. The hope is they continue to get better in crunch situations to improve the White Sox’s paltry record in games decided by a single run.
Manager Will Venable and the front office preferred to have three lefties in the bullpen in 2025. If 2026 has the same preference, you are looking at the recently acquired Murphy joining the incumbents of Gilbert and Eisert. The problem with those three is that Gilbert and Eisert were weak in high leverage, and Murphy is inexperienced. This weak crop of southpaw relievers is one reason I would prefer Newcomb to come out of the pen.
Paez and Alberto were the two picks the White Sox made in the recent Rule 5 draft. Both must remain on the active roster all season long or risk being lost back to their original clubs. While it would be difficult to have the Rule 5 draft produce two more outstanding pitchers for a second straight year, it cannot hurt to go to the well once more.
Director of player personnel Gene Watson revealed that the front office views the Rule 5 draft as another way to acquire high-ceiling talent. Paez and Alberto have some promising stuff. That is why I think, unless they are absolute train wrecks in Spring Training, they will make the roster in a bullpen role.
That will leave Wikelman González likely being squeezed out of the bullpen mix to start the season.
Catchers
Kyle Teel
Edgar Quero
Catcher is the strength of the lineup. Teel and Quero both have so much promise at the plate and behind it. Both need to hit for more power and improve defensively to reach their high ceilings. The White Sox also have Korey Lee, who has proven he is a capable backup big-league catcher. The team also recently claimed Drew Romo, who has played in a few MLB games with the Rockies.
Teel and Quero need to be in the lineup at least five days a week, with one of them designated hitting. However, that will necessitate Lee making the roster, as in 2025 Venable did not seem interested in having both Teel and Quero in the lineup together without a third catcher on the bench. Depth-wise, that might not be the wisest choice, as late-inning defense in the outfield must be a priority.
Unless Lee shows he can also play left field during Spring Training, the bench cannot afford to have a late-inning defensive replacement at catcher who can pinch-run. Because Lee is out of minor-league options and likely will not clear waivers, the team will need to consider dealing him.
There might be a path for Lee to make the roster if the front office and Venable decide to only carry 12 pitchers through the first month, as a fifth starter is not needed until later in April. However, the club had that same option last year and chose to carry a standard five-man rotation.
Infield
Munetaka Murakami (1B)
Chase Meidroth (2B)
Colson Montgomery (SS)
Miguel Vargas (3B)
Bench: Lenyn Sosa (1B, 2B, and DH) and Tanner Murray (2B, SS, 3B, and OF)
Murakami was the headline-stealing signing of the offseason. The Japanese masher has unreal power, but must prove he can make contact at the big-league level. While Murakami did play third base in Japan, the organization is going to slot him in at first base.
Meidroth must improve his average to prove he is an everyday leadoff hitter. He must also stay healthy. Because he does not provide a lot of power but has a knack for taking walks, he must also add hitting more singles and doubles to the offense. If he has nagging injuries again and is inconsistent with at the plate, Top 15 prospect Sam Antonacci could end up taking his starting job.
Montgomery was amazing after he debuted in early July, with 21 homers in 71 games. The goal for him is to prove that he was not a flash in the pan and continue to ascend toward superstardom.
Vargas proved in 2025 that he is, at least, a promising player. He must now prove that he can be more than a decent-hitting third baseman. No matter what he does, he may still only be a bridge at the hot corner if young, promising prospects like Caleb Bonemer and Billy Carlson show promise that they can be superstars. Because Carlson has the better glove, he could eventually force Colson to move to third. However, if the White Sox take superstar college prospect Roch Cholowsky with the No. 1 overall pick, that could move Montgomery over to third even sooner.
Sosa led the team in home runs, with 22 last season. He continues to show he can improve at the plate, and that should earn him the right to be on the 2026 team. The problem is that he swings too freely, and his defense is atrocious. Ideally, Sosa is a replacement-level designated hitter … but DH needs to be open for Teel and Quero to get at-bats. Sosa could be used at first on days the White Sox are facing a lefty. If he is positioned correctly at second, he can at least spell Meidroth on days he needs a day off.
Murray was acquired in an offseason trade with Tampa. The youngster can play pretty much every infield position and some outfield. That defensive versatility gives him a leg up on Curtis Mead (who did not impress after being acquired in the Adrian Houser deal) and Bryan Ramos.
Outfield
Andrew Benintendi (LF)
Luis Robert Jr. (CF)
Brooks Baldwin (RF)
Bench: Derek Hill and Everson Periera
Benintendi’s bloated contract makes him nearly untradable, but it also means he has to get playing time. Unless Robert gets traded before Opening Day, the front office is going to gamble again that he stays healthy and returns to his All-Star 2023 play. The hope is that he drives up his trade value, and can be dealt at the deadline for a package of impact prospects.
The White Sox non-tendered veteran Mike Tauchman, so it looks like Baldwin will be given the first crack to be the starter in right. Right field is a trouble position for the White Sox, one that this team is still trying to find a long-term solution for since Jermaine Dye retired in 2009. Baldwin finished the 2025 season strong at the plate. The front office envisions him being the next Ben Zobrist. However, he might just be the second coming of Leury García.
Because Baldwin he is still learning to track the ball, it makes sense for the solid defenders like Hill and Periera to make the roster. Hill was given a split contract to avoid arbitration. He is likely going to be an asset in the organization whether he makes the initial 26-man roster or not. Former highly regarded prospect Jarred Kelenic was signed to a minor-league deal with an invite to camp. He could beat out Hill and provide a left-handed bat off of the bench. However, Hill is a strong defender, and you are going to want him replacing Baldwin or Benintendi late in close games. It is also why I would prefer Periera to make the roster: He still has promise, and is a better defensive outfielder than Kelenic to replace whoever Hill does not.
