With Spring Training just around the corner, many major media outlets have taken their shot at ranking the Top 100 prospects in Major League Baseball entering 2026. Some, like Baseball America and MLB Pipeline, are optimistic about several White Sox players, many of whom may be in Chicago this season. ESPN, however, is a bit more bearish on the White Sox, including ranking outfielder Braden Montgomery- widely considered the White Sox top prospect- completely outside their Top 100. In addition to their Top 100 list, ESPN released a ranking of their 101-200 ranked prospects, and White Sox fans saw a bit of a surprise appearance on the list.
Infielder William Bergolla, acquired from the Philadelphia Phillies in the 2024 trade that sent Tanner Banks to Philadelphia, appeared 199th out of 200 on the list. He’s not ranked on any top 100 lists and MLB Pipeline currently lists him as the 12th best prospect in the organization, so it’s a bit surprising to see him listed here. Kyle Lodise, George Wolkow, Sam Antonacci, and Jaden Fauske are each ranked ahead of Bergolla on the MLB Pipeline list, but not featured in the top 100 on ESPN.
Bergolla brings a unique skillset to the White Sox farm system
As far as tools go, Bergolla has two main strengths: contact ability and speed. He hit .300 at the High-A level between the Phillies and White Sox organizations in 2024, and hit .286 with Double-A Birmingham in 2025. Bergolla walked more than he struck out in 2025, and his 11% strikeout rate was among the lowest in minor league baseball. He stole 27 bases in 2024 and 40 in 2025, using his contact ability to take extra bases despite holding little extra base power. Defensively, Bergolla is serviceable and has played both shortstop and second base.
William Bergolla, with the RBI triple, ties the game and Wilfred Veras with the walk-off single as the Barons win 4-3 in 10 innings over the Lookouts last night. pic.twitter.com/rtLITLZH50
— Birmingham Barons (@BhamBarons) May 16, 2025
Those are the positives, so now let's focus on his limitations. At just 5-foot-9 and 165 pounds, Bergolla doesn’t generate much strength or power. He’s hit just one minor league home run in more than a thousand at bats. While his ability to make contact is elite, a lot of his contact ends up being soft ground balls, which aren’t particularly productive, especially against higher-level defenses. He projects as a defensive replacement or pinch runner type at this stage in his career, and he’ll need to take meaningful strides toward becoming a more well-rounded hitter if he’d like to make a significant big league impact.
Bergolla will be just 21 years old for the entirety of the 2026 season, so he certainly has time to add muscle and develop some power. A player of his stature making this adjustment is rare, but not unheard of. Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies hit just one home run in his first two minor league seasons combined and graded at a 20 on the 20-80 power scale like Bergolla. Albies, standing at 5-foot-7, never reached a double digit homer total in his minor league career, but he found his power stroke upon reaching the big leagues. Albies has since logged four big league seasons with at least 20 home runs, including breaking 30 in 2021 and 2023.
By no means am I predicting Bergolla to make a similar change, and the overwhelming likelihood is he won’t, but there’s a recorded example of such an adjustment being made. We’ll see if the new White Sox hitting staff, led by Ryan Fuller, is up to the challenge.