Despite losing more than 100 games for a third consecutive year, the 2025 Chicago White Sox quietly took a step forward.

2025 was never about chasing a Wild Card berth or pretending to be contenders. It was about establishing a young core — the kind of foundational year that can quietly reshape a franchise’s direction.

That meant seeing real contributions from rookies like Kyle Teel, Colson Montgomery, and Edgar Quero — all of whom flashed big-league potential. But another encouraging storyline came from players who weren’t making their debuts.

Lenyn Sosa emerged as one of Chicago’s biggest surprises, leading the team in hits (137), home runs (22), and RBIs (75). He wasn’t guaranteed a roster spot out of Spring Training, yet by September, he looked like a legitimate building block or trade asset. That’s the kind of internal development every rebuilding club needs — homegrown progress that makes a front office’s life easier.

Shane Smith, while a rookie, came out of nowhere to make the All-Star team. The rookie right-hander was the club’s best starter for much of the season and looks like a strong favorite to get the ball on Opening Day in 2026.

Neither Sosa nor Smith entered the year as top-ranked prospects. But both broke out in a big way, and both are now viewed as potential long-term pieces on the South Side.

So, who’s next? If you’re looking for players ready to follow that same breakout blueprint in 2026, keep an eye on Brooks Baldwin and Grant Taylor.

Brooks Baldwin

Brooks Baldwin turned heads in 2024 when he hit .324 with an .851 across multiple levels of the minors, including a strong stint in Double-A Birmingham and an even better showing after his promotion to Triple-A Charlotte. He went from being a low-profile prospect with a solid hit tool to a name the organization simply couldn’t ignore.

He earned a chance in the big leagues down the stretch of the 2024 season, but his first extended look in the majors was rocky. Baldwin then spent much of the early part of 2025 searching for consistency.

He batted just .205 over his first 40-plus games this past spring before being sent back to Charlotte — but that demotion may have been exactly what he needed. Baldwin caught fire immediately upon his return, launching a flurry of home runs and forcing the front office to take notice once again. Even after a brief and confusing call-up that saw him sit on the bench for most of a week, Baldwin didn’t lose momentum.

He returned to Triple-A, stayed locked in, and finished with video-game numbers — 12 home runs and an OPS north of 1.100 in fewer than 30 games. By the time he got his final call back to the majors, he’d re-established himself as one of the high-upside, exciting bats in the system.

From early July through the end of the big-league season, Baldwin hit .268 with eight home runs and an OPS just above .800. His overall numbers may not jump off the page, but the mid-season turnaround was dramatic enough to suggest real growth.

If he can carry that version of himself across a full season, Baldwin has a chance to be one of the most valuable utility players in baseball — the kind of defensively versatile, switch-hitting bat every winning team needs.

And while Teel and Montgomery may get most of the attention, Baldwin could easily be the name that sneaks up on everyone and earns a permanent spot in the Sox lineup.

Grant Taylor

Grant Taylor’s major-league debut was one of the most anticipated moments of 2025. His dominance in Double-A — both as a starter and reliever — combined with a fastball that consistently touches triple digits, gave White Sox fans plenty of reason to dream.

Even if Chicago decides to keep him in the bullpen long-term, Taylor’s stuff plays at a level that could make him one of the next great young closers in the game. That alone could save the Sox millions, allowing them to anchor their bullpen around homegrown talent rather than chasing expensive veteran arms in free agency.

Taylor’s final stat line — a 4.91 ERA with six saves in 36 appearances — doesn’t tell the full story. His season was defined by unlucky contact and inflated numbers that didn’t reflect how electric he actually looked.

Under the hood, the metrics were outstanding. Taylor ranked among the league’s elite in whiff rate, strikeout rate, barrel rate, ground-ball percentage, and pitch extension. His expected ERA (2.88) and expected batting average (.219) paint a much more accurate picture of the pitcher he truly was.

Give him another offseason in the team’s revamped pitching lab, and it’s not hard to imagine those underlying numbers turning into real-world results.

If Taylor posts a sub-3.00 ERA, racks up 30-plus saves, and keeps missing bats at a 13-K-per-nine pace next year, it wouldn’t shock anyone paying attention. He has all the makings of a future All-Star closer — and the demeanor to match it.

Building toward something real

The 2025 White Sox didn’t win much, but for the first time in a long time, it felt like their losses were leading somewhere. They finally have a crop of young, controllable players who are improving together.

If Baldwin and Taylor can join the likes of Sosa, Smith, Teel, and Montgomery in taking another step forward, the narrative around this franchise will start to shift. A rebuild stops being theoretical once the pieces begin to stick.

That’s what 2026 represents: a chance for the White Sox to stop talking about potential and start seeing results that turn into wins. The record might not flip overnight, but the foundation is here — and for a team that’s spent years searching for one, that’s progress worth celebrating.