The White Sox came out of the 2026 MLB draft with one of the more well-regarded classes in the class, and the biggest reason is sitting right at the top. First overall pick Roch Cholowsky has already passed his physical and is set to sign for $10.35 million, a figure that shatters the MLB Draft bonus record previously held by Chase Burns and Charlie Condon at $9.3 million.
That number jumps off the page, but it does not appear to change the White Sox’s broader plan. Their bonus pool topped $20 million, and with the small overage teams are allowed, they can spend a little more than $21 million on the class. Even with Cholowsky taking nearly half of that total, the deal comes in $1 million below slot value, which gives Chicago room to work with the rest of its picks.
The real key for the White Sox is how the money gets spread around from here. Much of the savings is expected to help land 34th overall pick Landon Thome and second-rounder Cole Prosek, both prep bats committed to college. Third- and fourth-rounders Joey Volchko and Eric Segura could come in around slot, while the team may create additional savings by going under slot with senior slugger Jayson Jones and relievers Luke Craytor, Isaac Yeager, and Darin Horn.
There are also a couple of prep players who likely need more money to sign. Sixth-rounder Alex Weingartner and 11th-rounder Kyle Casteel are both high school picks and will probably have to be paid above slot. As for 20th-round pick Connor Fennell, scouting director Mike Shirley said the White Sox will not sign him unless a medical issue affects another signing.
The expectation around the organization is that the numbers were mapped out well before the draft. Cholowsky’s deal likely had already been negotiated with his agents, and the White Sox appear to have done the math on how everything else fits around it. That’s part of why they were comfortable taking aggressive swings on some of these players in the first place.
In all, 20 of the 21 White Sox draftees are expected to sign, giving the farm system another wave of talent. Cholowsky should move in as the club’s top prospect right away, with Thome and Prosek also likely to land in the top 10. For a major league team already in a playoff position, the pipeline is getting stronger at the same time.
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