The Chicago White Sox selected UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky with the first overall pick Saturday afternoon at the 2026 Major League Baseball Draft in Philadelphia.
Cholowsky, who turned 21 in April, is considered by draft analysts to be the best college shortstop prospect since Troy Tulowitzki in 2005. He’s the first college shortstop to be taken No. 1 overall since Dansby Swanson in 2015.
Cholowsky was an early favorite to go first overall, with Texas high school shortstop Grady Emerson and Georgia Tech catcher Vahn Lackey also among the top tier of available players. The Tampa Bay Rays were set to pick second overall, and the Minnesota Twins third.
It was Chicago’s first time picking first overall since 1977, when they took prep outfielder Harold Baines, who became a Hall of Famer in 2019. The White Sox also picked high school catcher Danny Goodwin first overall in 1971, but did not sign him.
Cholowsky produced a .329/.448/.624 slash line with 52 home runs in 178 career games over three seasons for the Bruins. He ranked second among NCAA Division I shortstops this season in wins above replacement and defensive runs saved, per USA Baseball, which named him a finalist for the Golden Spikes Award as the nation’s top amateur player.
Cholowsky twice won Big Ten Player of the Year, something only three individuals have accomplished, and helped UCLA win a share of the past two conference championships. His production didn’t dip overall as a junior, but his draft stock waned among some analysts after he didn’t dominate at the NCAA tournament, with the top-ranked Bruins failing to reach the Men’s College World Series.
While analysts universally project Cholowsky to be at least a solid major leaguer at a premium position on both sides of the ball, some worry that his potential ceiling isn’t as high as that of Emerson, an 18-year-old from Fort Worth Christian High School. Neither of the top shortstops project to make an impact like that of Kansas City Royals star Bobby Witt. Several analysts ranked Lackey narrowly as the best player in the draft, but had concerns about his relatively short history playing baseball, along with the physical toll that catching inevitably takes on any prospect.
A right-handed batter listed at 6-foot-2 and 202 pounds, Cholowsky could have taken a college football scholarship to play quarterback at Notre Dame. He even said he prefers football, but also acknowledged that a baseball-only path gave him the best professional outcome.
Had he chosen to skip college three years ago, Cholowsky was said to be a top-50 draft prospect as a high schooler. He grew up around baseball as the son of an MLB scout, Dan Cholowsky, who himself was drafted in the first round (39th overall) by the St. Louis Cardinals in 1991. He played for eight seasons with four organizations professionally, including 285 games at Triple-A, before turning to scouting.
In a rebuilding phase for the past several years, Chicago has been a surprise contender in the American League Central. One of their leaders is shortstop Colson Montgomery, who has developed into one of the best players at his position in a league deep with big-time talent playing short.
The White Sox also have a deep farm system rich with additional shortstop talent like Caleb Bonemer and Billy Carlson. But a good thing about drafting any shortstop is the flexibility to change their position if needed. By the time Cholowsky is ready to play in the majors, Montgomery and others could move elsewhere on the diamond.
–Field Level Media
