White Sox steal college bat in the MLB Draft that did something nobody else could do

With the 196th overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft, the White Sox landed underrated college slugger Anthony DePino, the only D1 player to have a 20-20 season.
2025 MLB Draft
2025 MLB Draft | Matthew Grimes Jr./Atlanta Braves/GettyImages

In four seasons at the University of Rhode Island, third baseman Anthony DePino hit 65 home runs and had three seasons with an OPS north of 1.000.

That kind of offensive upside is exactly what the Chicago White Sox were drawn to when they drafted him with the 196th overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft.

It’s not a bad seventh round selection for the White Sox, who are power deficient and need to add some impact bats to the organization.

Anthony DePino has a ton of pop

DePino has loud offensive tools. The power is legit, and while he’s not the fastest guy out there, he runs well for a big corner infielder. DePino is The 5-foot-11 and 218 pounds, but you wouldn’t know from watching him play. 

Surprisingly, DePino did something in 2025 that no other player in Division-I college baseball was able to do. He had a 20-20 season, with 20 home runs and 21 stolen bases in 2025.

DePino makes a lot of loud contact. He can hit it out of the yard the other way just as easily as he can to the pull side.

The 22-year-old infielder was second in Division-I baseball with a 23.5 percent Barrel Rate. He was third in the country with 5.4 WAR. (Data via 643 charts)

There’s a chance he moves to first base at some point in his career, but the White Sox certainly won’t mind as long as DePino produces on offense.

DePino was overlooked in the MLB Draft

This another classic example of a college stud getting overlooked because he plays for a small school. Rhode Island is not known as a baseball powerhouse, but DePino proved he can thrive against top-tier competition this season, as well.

In DePino’s final season with the Rams, URI won the Atlantic 10's regular season and conference tournament titles with a program-record 38 wins.

In the first NCAA regional game against Dallas Baptist, DePino went 2-for-4 with a home run and a walk. He also went 6-for-17 in a road series against the Oregon Ducks back in February. 

As someone who has been solely focused on the White Sox adding position players and power bats in the draft, I’m pretty high on the selection of DePino in the seventh round. 

I’m curious to see how his college production will translate to the professional ranks. He could be a prospect that moves through the minor leagues fairly quickly given his age.