It can only go up from here, right?
Most, if not all, of the South Side fanbase wants to forget about the 2024 Chicago White Sox season. Even if the franchise won't contend for a World Series anytime soon, there's still something about the beginning of a new season that brings newfound hope to fans.
The White Sox have an exciting group of prospects who, if all goes well, should bring back a winning culture to the organization.
As for the players on the current MLB roster, Chicago's Opening Day slugfest in front of 31,000-plus fans made for quite the show.
The White Sox belted three home runs to secure an 8-1 victory over the Los Angeles Angels. That blowout win has us here at Southside Showdown thinking about what the peaks of the 2025 White Sox season could look like.
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There's much to look forward to for the White Sox. Six of the team's top prospects are among the top 100 in baseball according to MLB Pipeline. They all reside in the top 65, making for some intriguing decisions throughout the season by Chicago's brass.
A few White Sox youngsters not on that list cracked the Opening Day roster, one of which got the nod to start game No. 1. Sean Burke dazzled in his 2025 debut, tossing six shutout innings and grabbing the win. He picked up where he left off after four great outings last September upon his first MLB call-up.
He will soon be joined in the rotation by Noah Schultz and possibly Hagen Smith, the consensus best left-handed pitching prospects in the minors. Along with the expected promotions of Kyle Teel, Colson Montgomery, and Edgar Quero this year, the White Sox will have several memorable debuts to celebrate this season.
Chicago's young core will turn heads and multiple players will be in the discussion for the American League Rookie of the Year Award. At least three of them will receive votes, with one of them finishing in the top three.
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The last two seasons saw one White Sox player named to the AL All-Star team. Every MLB team is guaranteed at least one, but Garrett Crochet in 2024 and Luis Robert Jr. in 2023 rightfully earned their spots among the league's best.
Debates will be had this year involving who deserves that honor, so much so that the White Sox will have multiple All-Stars for the first time since 2022. If Robert can return to 2023 form where he clubbed 26 home runs in the first half, he will have a chance. Andrew Benintendi, an All-Star three years ago, can make some noise and be in the conversation. It's not out of the realm of possibility multiple White Sox pitchers can make cases for themselves.
The White Sox faithful will have fun discussions in June and July regarding who should represent the franchise during MLB's midseason showcase. Aaron Boone and his All-Star team coaching staff need to keep an eye on the South Side.
Forget those projected win totals
Most projection systems have the White Sox finishing with a win total somewhere in the low-to-mid 50s. That would be a noticeable improvement from their 41 wins last season, but why not smash that number?
Chicago still might have a bottom-five roster in the league, but at some point, every athlete gets tired of losing. With the influx of talent from the minors and several veterans giving their best, the White Sox will soar past the projections and capture at least 65 wins.
Any team will take a 24-win improvement from the prior season. A lot of games throughout a baseball season come down to luck. Why can't the ChiSox run into a four-leaf clover a few times and win some games they have no business doing?