After getting drafted first overall in last month’s MLB Draft, new Chicago White Sox shortstop and former UCLA Bruin Roch Cholowsky homered for the first time with the team, going deep in a Complex League game for the White Sox.
The expectations are sky-high for Cholowsky, who was viewed as the draft’s No. 1 prospect throughout the 2026 college baseball season. Baseball America shares that optimism, ranking Cholowsky as the White Sox’s No. 1 prospect and having Cholowsky as the No. 5 prospect in the entire sport.
Cholowsky is a known commodity, being a two-time finalist for the Golden Spikes Award and hitting .329 over his 178 game career. Cholowsky slugged 52 home runs and drove in 167 runs as a Bruin.
The real question is how the White Sox will use Cholowsky. Cholowsky is a capable enough defender to stick at shortstop long-term but Chicago is seeing 24-year old Colson Montgomery have a bit of a breakout season at shortstop. Montgomery is tied for ninth in the majors with 25 home runs even if he’s batting just .215 on the season.
MLB.com hasn’t reflected their prospect rankings post-draft but currently they have Chicago’s No. 1 prospect, Caleb Bonemer, as a shortstop/third baseman and their No. 3 prospect, Billy Carlson, as another option at shortstop for the White Sox.
Even with Montgomery at the MLB level and Bonemer and Carlson waiting in the wings, Cholowsky has the highest ceiling of them all, with Cholowsky being one of the top college shortstops this century after his terrific career with the Bruins.
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: Roch Cholowsky hits first home run with the Chicago White Sox
Reporting by Dylan McNeill, UCLA Wire / UCLA Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Dylan McNeill, UCLA Wire | USA TODAY Network
