Diego Natera
Catcher
5´10´´
190 pounds
Age: 19
First appearance in the South Side Sox Top 100
2026 High Level DSL (rookie)
Age relative to high level
SSS rank among all catchers in the system 8
Overall 2026 stats 31 games ⚾️ 1 HR ⚾️ 4 RBI ⚾️ .314/.400/.600 ⚾️ 4 BB ⚾️ 13 K ⚾️ 1-of-15 (6.7% CS) ⚾️ .957 FLD% ⚾️ 0.3 WAR
Every time we run out this Top 100, the results can surprise, a player ranked higher than anyone else has him (cough Grant Umberger cough) and we’re right … or, sometimes fantastically,
we’re wrong. So let me take this moment to direct all slings and arrows my way if two-season DSL catcher Diego Natera dissolves into the ether if he makes it Stateside for the ACL White Sox in 2027; he’s on the list solely because I’m taking a flier on him.
The White Sox inked Natera to an international deal in January 2025, handing over a $225,000 signing bonus that wasn’t exactly spare change but not quite saying more than why not, either. The 17-year-old’s summer didn’t quite validate the decision, either, as he was, uh, BAD. Like, .156/.415/.267 slash bad.
However, there was one thing that was really, really good about Natera in 2025: his defense, particularly an arm that gunned down 36% of base-stealers. He was just a baby, and was flashing a cannon.
In 2026, the script flipped, as Natera in somewhat limited time shook his bat awake (.314/.400/.600) but lost the plot behind the plate. Here’s his sole homer of the 2026 season:
The ranking here reflects a belief he’ll put the two sides of his game together in 2027, as he makes the challenging move into the ACL.
Full 2027 South Side Sox Top 100 White Sox Prospects Storystream
