Some MLB prospects take a little bit longer to develop than others. That's especially true of players who are drafted out of high school with raw talent and very little experience. A recently promoted Chicago White Sox pitching prospect is a great example of that.
Tanner McDougal, a 22-year-old right-handed pitcher that was drafted by Chicago in the 5th round of the 2021 MLB Draft, was promoted to Double-A Birmingham on Thursday evening.
McDougal was drafted out of Silverado High School in Las Vegas, NV. He passed on his college commitment to Oregon and turned pro when the White Sox gave him an over-slot signing bonus of $850,000.
Nearly four years after being drafted, McDougal is thriving in the minor leagues and is on his way to becoming a big leaguer. But before he was climbing the ranks of the minor leagues, McDougal had to overcome a lot of adversity. His development in professional baseball has not always been linear.
McDougal's early injury
McDougal's high school coaches limited his innings to protect him from injury for most of his prep career. It made him a difficult player to scout, with an intriguing 6-foot-5 frame that led most evaluators to believe his low 90s fastball could gain more velocity over time.
When he shined during the inaugural MLB Draft Combine in 2021, the White Sox fell in love and drafted him.
McDougal appeared in six minor league games as an 18-year-old before blowing out his elbow and having Tommy John surgery. The surgery kept him out for the entire 2022 season.
That's a big blow for a young pitcher. Obviously, an 18-year-old with limited innings under his belt needing Tommy John surgery is cause for concern in the future. Additionally, McDougal missed some valuable time in the minor leagues during his formative years. His elbow injury completely set back his development by 12-18 months.
McDougal's return and minor league struggles
Upon returning, McDougal showed that he still had some of the best pure stuff in the organization, but control and command have been a big problem.
His fastball, as predicted, gained velocity and was touching 99 mph while sitting in the mid-90s. His curveball and slider both showed ridiculous spin rates, but proved difficult to control, especially the vertically breaking curve.
In 21 starts for Kannapolis in 2023, McDougal had a 4.15 ERA and threw 69.1 innings. His 80 strikeouts were encouraging, but 43 walks and a 1.40 WHIP left a lot to be desired.
2024 was even worse. McDougal got off to a fine start in Kannapolis and was promoted to Winston-Salem, where his ERA rocketed to 7.40 in 16 starts. He got knocked around consistently, giving up 13 home runs and walking 58 batters over 92.1 innings.
It would have been easy to give up on McDougal at that point, but as I mentioned earlier, development with young pitchers is often not linear.
There were some growing pains in 2024. McDougal dropped in the White Sox prospect rankings and was the No. 29 preseason prospect in the organization for 2025. But this season, he has finally figured it out and will be climbing in Chicago's Top 30 mid-season update.
Putting it all together in 2025
McDougal seems to have put it all together in 2025. He is commanding his arsenal a bit better, which has resulted in the lowest walk rate and highest K/9 of his professional career.
In 13 starts with Winston-Salem (A+), McDougal has a 3.28 ERA. He has a 1.64 over his last four starts, which earned him his first promotion to Double-A.
RHP Tanner McDougal has been promoted to AA Birmingham. #Barons https://t.co/9bmrX3fdkm
— Ian Eskridge (@dailywhitesox) June 13, 2025
For all the time that McDougal has spent in the White Sox organization trying to figure things out and harness his talent, it can be easy to forget that he just turned 22 a few months ago.
While his prospect profile says that "his repertoire and lack of finesse may make him better suited for a relief role," there is still plenty of time for him to figure things out as a starter. Fortunately, the White Sox have the pitching depth throughout the organization to remain patient as McDougal settles in to a role.
I'm really curious to see how he will fare with Birmingham. If McDougal has success for the remainder of 2025 at an advanced level, we could be talking about him making his Major League debut at some point in 2026. Jury is still out on him, but McDougal is slowly starting to look like a future big leaguer.