The White Sox didn’t get cute with the No. 1 pick. They took the player who had been sitting there in plain view for months.
Chicago selected UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky first overall, a move that had felt increasingly inevitable once the White Sox won the draft lottery. High school shortstop Grady Emerson and Georgia Tech catcher Vahn Lackey were part of the conversation, but Cholowsky brought the kind of profile teams usually trust at the top: a high floor, a polished glove and a bat that could get to the majors quickly, possibly as soon as this season.
That’s the appeal here. Cholowsky isn’t just a safe choice; he looks like a clean fit for what the White Sox want to build.
In the long run, Chicago could line up with Colson Montgomery at third base and Cholowsky at shortstop, while Miguel Vargas and Munetaka Murakami split time at first base and designated hitter. On paper, that’s the kind of infield that can hang with anybody.
The shortstop comparison that keeps coming up is Dansby Swanson, the last player taken No. 1 overall at the position back in 2015. It makes sense.
Cholowsky is praised for his defense, his leadership and the way he settles things down in the middle of the infield. Scouts believe he has Gold Glove-caliber upside, the sort of steady presence teams love to plant at shortstop and forget about.
There’s also a case that his bat may end up being even louder than the glove.
Cholowsky went undrafted out of Hamilton High School in Arizona, even after being named Gatorade Arizona Baseball Player of the Year and ranking as a top 2023 prep prospect. He got to UCLA and immediately forced his way into the lineup, hitting .308 with eight home runs as a freshman before turning into one of the best all-around players in college baseball.
The production only grew from there. He hit .353 with 23 homers in 2025 and .320 with 21 homers in 2026, winning Big Ten Player of the Year in back-to-back seasons.
He also helped UCLA reach its first College World Series since 2013 and finished runner-up for the Golden Spikes Award. On the defensive side, he added Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year in 2025, which only strengthened the idea that he’s one of the rare two-way talents in the sport.
Cholowsky is now just the second UCLA player to go No. 1 overall, joining Gerrit Cole, who went to the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2011.
One of the biggest questions before the pick was money. There had been some thought that Chicago might turn to Emerson if Cholowsky’s bonus demands pushed things in another direction. That would have let the White Sox stretch their $20,489,500 draft pool and chase more upside later by going above slot elsewhere.
Instead, according to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, Cholowsky agreed to sign for less than the $11.3 million slot value at No. 1. His bonus is still expected to land near $10 million, but the below-slot deal gives Chicago more room to maneuver with the rest of its draft.
This was only the third time the White Sox have held the first pick. Danny Goodwin never signed after being taken No. 1 in 1971, while Harold Baines became a franchise icon after Chicago drafted him first overall in 1977. The organization will hope Cholowsky follows the Baines path.
After months of trying to sort through every possibility, Chris Getz didn’t try to outthink the board. He took the player most people believed was the safest and most complete in the class, and the White Sox now have a shortstop with the tools to become a franchise cornerstone.
The pick looks like a home run on paper. The next challenge is turning that into one at Rate Field.
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