With the 2026 MLB draft creeping into single digits, the White Sox are staring at a first overall pick that has become the kind of decision everyone in Chicago wants to solve for them. The names at the center of the conversation have mostly stayed the same: UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky, Texas prep shortstop Grady Emerson and Georgia Tech catcher Vahn Lackey. The debate, as it stands, is about what the White Sox value most - floor, ceiling or savings.
Then ESPN’s Jeff Passan widened the board this week by floating a different kind of path: Chicago could use the No. 1 pick to cut a deal below the $11.25 million slot value and free up money for a hard-to-sign player or two later in the draft. In that scenario, UCSB right-hander Jackson Flora becomes a name worth watching.
Passan wrote: “When the Chicago White Sox won the draft lottery in December, there was near-unanimous agreement they would use the No. 1 overall pick on UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky. And white the consensus is still that that will be the case, Chicago continues to weigh its options.
Texas high school shortstop Grady Emerson is the next-best bet. Georgia Tech catcher Vahn Lackey, who along with Cholowsky and Emerson comprises the clear top three on most draft boards, is another possibility.
And the White Sox could cut a deal with another player - UCSB right-hander Jackson Flora?-- below the $11.25 million slot value and use the savings to float a hard-to-sign player or two to a later pick”
Flora, 21, has the kind of season that gets people talking. The California native put up a 1.06 ERA in his junior year at UC Santa Barbara, struck out 133 batters in 102 innings and showed the sort of starter’s build teams dream on at 6-foot-5.
His arsenal is straightforward - fastball, slider, changeup - but the fastball already sits at 97 and has touched triple digits. His changeup is a kick change, the same type of pitch White Sox pitching director Brian Bannister has worked with Logan Webb, Davis Martin and others.
The control piece is part of the appeal, too. For a pitcher with plus stuff, it usually isn’t the first question, and Flora doesn’t carry the same concerns there. The bigger development task is getting more life on his offspeed pitches.
His season also points to a bigger trend: if Flora goes early, it would make it two straight years that a UCSB pitcher has gone in the top five, after the Angels took Tyler Bremner second overall in 2025.
The White Sox do not need to draft for need with the first pick, but there’s no denying the organization could use a right-handed starter with big stuff. Flora could move quickly, and if Chicago believes he can become an impact starter in the next couple of years, the fit starts to make some sense.
The money angle matters, too. Taking Flora could leave enough room to target another first-round talent in the second round and pay overslot, giving the White Sox a chance to land two or even three premium players.
Still, that kind of gamble comes with risk, and the warning sign is right there from 2024. Hagen Smith was viewed as the polished, safe choice, but he has struggled with his control and has not yet reached the majors.
Whether Flora is truly in play or just part of the noise, the White Sox are facing a draft decision with several viable directions. Chris Getz, Mike Shirley and the rest of the front office have options - and next Sunday, they’ll have to choose the one they believe gets it right.
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