Chicago White Sox need to fix an organizational deficiency in upcoming 2025 MLB Draft

In the modern era of baseball, it’s rare to see a one-dimensional World Series Champion. It’s not often that a below average offensive team solely relies on their pitching staff to carry them to a World Series. Gone are the days of being able to slug your way to the top without regard for the strength or stamina of your pitching staff.

Modern contending baseball teams look to be competitive on both sides of the ball, and the good GMs build their rosters accordingly.

As the Chicago White Sox look toward the future and restock the farm system, General Manager Chris Getz will soon be tasked with building a White Sox team that competes both on the mound and at the plate. 

Although the team is multiple years away from competing, it’s not too early to start looking at the building blocks in place for the future and find areas that need improvement. One such area for the White Sox is the power department.

White Sox need power

Not only do the White Sox have a power outage on the Major League team (only the Pirates and Royals have less homers in 2025), but the organization as a whole seems to be lacking home run power and offensive slugging.

The majority of the organization’s top hitting prospects, such as Kyle Teel, Edgar Quero, Chase Meidroth, and Caleb Bonemer, seem to be more contact-driven hitters. Of the White Sox Top 30 prospects from MLB Pipeline, only two - Braden Montgomery and George Wolkow - have a power grade of higher than 55 on the 20-80 scale.

Don't read this as me thinking being contact-oriented is a bad thing. There is plenty of room for good contact hitters in the Major League lineup. Every good team needs some table setters, but a lineup that is well balanced with power and contact is far more likely to sustain success.

The White Sox will have an opportunity to address the power troubles with the 10th and 44th picks in the upcoming 2025 MLB Draft. There are a few prospects that would specifically help them in this area.

Options in the MLB Draft

Aiva Arquette, SS, Oregon State

The likelihood that Aiva Arquette makes it to the White Sox at No. 10 overall is astronomically low, but Chicago should be all over him if he’s on the board.

At 6-foot-5, Arquette is a big enough guy to cause questions about his ability to play shortstop long-term. But given his size, the bat should profile well at third base, and he’s athletic enough to have a shot in an outfield spot.

Arquette's bat speed metrics are good. He’s got well above-average power. With Teel, Montgomery, and Wolkow hitting from the left side, the Sox could use some right-handed pop to balance out the lineup, and Arquette could be a great fit if he happens to fall. 

Jace LaViolette, OF, Texas A&M

Jace LaViolette is a name that has been connected to the White Sox for a while now. He was a college teammate of White Sox prospect Braden Montgomery, and the White Sox have a shortage of power-hitting outfielders in their minor league system.

It will be interesting to see where LaViolette lands, as he entered the 2025 season firmly in the conversation to go first overall before a down year caused him to fall down draft boards.

Power-wise, he’s one of the best in the class, but there’s concerns about his strikeout rate and whether he’ll be able to hit for average as a professional. Depending how the draft board falls, the White Sox could take the risk and gamble on one of the best power hitters in college baseball. 

Xavier Neyens, 3B, Mount Vernon HS (WA)

There's a lot of prep talent in the 2025 draft class, and the White Sox may very well choose to go the high school route.

There may be no better prep power hitter in the class than Xavier Neyens, who MLB Pipeline ranks as the No. 27 overall draft prospect in the class.

Questions about Neyens' hit tool and his defensive position (he will likely be limited to a corner) have potentially hurt his draft stock, but there’s no question that he has above-average power all over the diamond.

With the White Sox picking at 10 and 44, they may have to get creative to land Neyens, and either underslot him at 10 or overslot him at 44. Either way, it can be done if the organization feels convicted enough by his tools. MLB.com compares Neyens to a left-handed version of the Braves’ Austin Riley, and if the White Sox feel the same way, they may make it happen. 

Jacob Parker, OF, Purvis HS (MS)

Mississippi prep shortstop JoJo Parker has been a popular name mocked to the White Sox at No. 10 overall recently, and his twin brother Jacob is also in this year’s draft class.

JoJo is the more well-rounded hitter, with Jacob flashing superior power. There is some belief in the industry that a team could look to draft both brothers with their first two picks. I think that’s definitely on the table for the White Sox.

Ranked at No. 107 by MLB Pipeline, the White Sox certainly wouldn’t take Jacob until the 2nd- or maybe even 3rd- round of the draft. As is the case with many high school bats, there are questions about his hit tool, but the power is very real, and he could fit the profile of what the White Sox are looking for in high school flyer.

With the MLB Draft just a few weeks away, the White Sox have an excellent opportunity to address one of the major deficiencies currently plaguing Chicago's farm system.

Much of this will be dependent on how the board falls, but Chris Getz, Mike Shirley, and the front office have an interesting decision to make. As the Sox inch closer to contention, it’s a decision that could have a massive impact on the team’s future.