The White Sox will send nine players to the Arizona Fall League, including five top 30 prospects, tied with the Dodgers for the most of any MLB organization.
The Arizona Fall League has long served as one of baseball's premier developmental showcases, giving organizations an opportunity to send some of their most intriguing young players to compete against high-level prospects from around the sport.
The Chicago White Sox will be well represented in Arizona this fall, sending nine players from their farm system to continue their development after the conclusion of the 2026 minor league season.
Five of those nine players are currently ranked among the top 30 prospects in the White Sox organization. That ties Chicago with the Los Angeles Dodgers for the most Top 30 prospects being sent to the Arizona Fall League by any organization this year.
From one of the best prospects in all of baseball to several under-the-radar pitchers who broke out during the 2026 season, the White Sox will have plenty worth following in Arizona this fall.
RHP Nick Altermatt
Right-handed pitcher Nick Altermatt was drafted by the White Sox in the 17th round of the 2022 MLB Draft out of Minnesota State Mankato. While he's been productive at every level of minor league baseball since turning pro, Altermatt had been held back in the lower levels of the minor leagues prior to 2026.
He missed the entire 2023 season due to injury and spent 2024 and 2025 toggling between Low-A Kannapolis and High-A Winston-Salem.
In 2026, the White Sox started Altermatt in Double-A Birmingham, where he posted a 2.61 ERA over 30 appearances and 41.1 innings. That earned him a promotion to Triple-A Charlotte in August, where he has a 3.55 ERA over eight appearances and 12.2 innings.
Altermatt is a deceptive right-hander who will soon turn 27 years old. But now that he'll be knocking on the door of an MLB opportunity, the White Sox are going to continue testing him against quality competition as he extends his productive 2026 season with an appearance in the Arizona Fall League.
RHP Jonathan Clark
After going 10-20 with a 5.34 ERA during his collegiate career at San Jose State, right-handed pitcher Jonathan Clark went undrafted in 2023.
Rather than give up on baseball, Clark spent the next two years playing independent ball. In 2024, he spent the entire season with the Missoula PaddleHeads of the Pioneer League and posted a 10.73 ERA over 12 appearances. Clark threw 48.2 innings during the 2024 season, allowing 70 hits, 28 walks and 58 earned runs.
It led Clark to search for solutions and work with Tread Athletics in the offseason. It was there that he went through new drills intended to create more flexibility in his shoulder and allow him to dial in his command and control.
With his new and improved delivery, the White Sox took a chance and signed Clark to a minor league contract ahead of the 2025 season. They also moved him to a bullpen role. Clark started the year in Low-A Kannapolis, where he pitched well enough to earn a midseason promotion to Winston-Salem. Between the two levels in his professional debut season, Clark posted a 1.93 ERA over 56 innings in relief.
While he wasn't nearly as productive in 2026, it was still an overall solid season for Clark against a more advanced level of competition. He spent the majority of the year in Double-A Birmingham and went 9-3 with a 4.10 ERA between two levels. It certainly proved that his previous production was no fluke and that he can be a competitive arm in professional baseball. Now he'll be tested even further in the Arizona Fall League.
RHP Pierce George (No. 19 Prospect)
Right-handed pitcher Pierce George didn't get a ton of opportunities during his college career. He pitched in only three games for the Texas Longhorns in 2023 before transferring to Alabama for the 2024 season. He went 1-0 with a 4.76 ERA over 12 appearances for the Crimson Tide and was limited largely due to control issues.
That being said, George had one of the highest-velocity, most explosive fastballs in college baseball. Even in a limited sample size, it made him an attractive flyer for professional organizations in the MLB Draft.
The White Sox took a chance on the 6-foot-6 right-hander in the 13th round of the 2024 MLB Draft. But it took George a few trips around the sun to really discover himself as a pitcher. He had a 6.00 ERA over six outings in 2024, then a 6.42 ERA over a full season of work in Low-A Kannapolis in 2025.
After issuing 8.5 walks per nine innings in 2025, George slashed that number to 3.8 in 2026. As a result, he went 8-3 with a 3.68 ERA over 50 appearances and was promoted across four levels, going all the way from Low-A Kannapolis to Triple-A Charlotte.
He should make a few appearances for the Knights before the season comes to an end.
George spins the ball like a lights-out reliever. His fastball has great spin rates and a ton of ride, and he pairs it with a sharp upper-80s slider that generates plenty of whiffs. It's a big, physical, twitchy arm with enough clear upside to make George the No. 19 prospect in the White Sox farm system.
George is the type of pitcher who, as we've seen in 2026, can move fairly quickly. It seems pretty clear to me that the White Sox intend to use him in Chicago at some point in 2027. That's only reinforced by the team now sending him to the Arizona Fall League.
RHP Mathias LaCombe (No. 18 Prospect)
Ranked just one spot above George in Chicago's top 30 prospects, coming in at No. 18, is right-handed pitcher Mathias LaCombe. Like George, LaCombe has climbed the ranks of the minor leagues in 2026 and recently earned himself a promotion to Triple-A Charlotte for the end of the regular season.
Drafted in the 12th round of the 2023 MLB Draft, LaCombe posted a 1.74 ERA over 67.1 innings at Cochise College in Arizona. He also became just the second native of France to be selected in the MLB Draft and was signed away from his commitment to Louisiana-Lafayette.
LaCombe showed a lot of promise in his first professional season as a starting pitcher in 2025, posting a 3.04 ERA over 53.1 innings. But a majority of those innings came in the Arizona Complex League, which was less than ideal from a competition standpoint for a 23-year-old arm.
In 2026, the White Sox moved LaCombe to a bullpen role and gave him an opportunity in High-A Winston-Salem and eventually Double-A Birmingham. While he ran into some early struggles following his promotion, LaCombe has pitched 16 innings with a 1.13 ERA and a .113 batting average allowed over his last 12 outings dating back to Aug. 2.
Hence the most recent elevation to Triple-A Charlotte and the general optimism about his future within the White Sox organization. The Arizona Fall League will give LaCombe another opportunity to continue that momentum against quality competition.
RHP Garrett Wright
The White Sox used their final pick in the 2023 MLB Draft to select right-handed pitcher Garrett Wright out of TCU in the 20th round. Wright was a career relief pitcher and occasional closer in college, spending three years with the Horned Frogs and posting a 3.34 ERA over 60 appearances out of the bullpen.
Wright threw 9.1 innings with a 0.96 ERA in Low-A Kannapolis immediately after signing, but then missed almost the entire 2025 season due to injury.
In 2026, it's been more production out of the bullpen, with Wright posting a 4.20 ERA over 55.2 innings across three levels of minor league baseball. He finished the year in Double-A Birmingham, and now the White Sox are choosing to get aggressive with their former 20th-round pick by testing him in the Arizona Fall League.
C Grant Magill
Catcher Grant Magill was an undrafted free agent signed by the White Sox shortly after the 2024 MLB Draft. Magill spent five years at Indiana State, where he struggled to produce offensively for most of his college career. His total collegiate OPS sat at .698, with his best offensive season coming in his fifth and final year, when he hit six home runs with 46 RBIs and a .734 OPS.
After posting a .653 OPS over 44 games in his professional debut season, Magill entered 2026 at 25 years old hoping to make some noise. He did that early in the year with a .286 batting average and .759 OPS in High-A Winston-Salem. That earned him a promotion to Double-A Birmingham, where he started to struggle a bit more and hit just .196 the rest of the way.
Magill is a prospect with upside largely due to his defense and huge arm behind the plate. He guns down baserunners at will, and the White Sox are likely hoping to develop his bat enough to tap into more of that defensive value as he matures.
IF Anthony DePino (No. 22 Prospect)
Anthony DePino was one of the most intriguing draft picks made by the Chicago White Sox during the 2025 MLB Draft. Taken in the seventh round out of Rhode Island, DePino posted a 1.235 OPS in his final year of college baseball. He was one of just two Division I college baseball players to hit 20 or more home runs and steal 20 or more bases during the 2025 season.
While he was generally underrated because he lacked a clear-cut position and played at a smaller school without consistently seeing high-end competition, the White Sox were happy to bet on DePino's production and sign him under slot for $147,000.
The 2026 season has made them look really smart for doing so. After starting the year in High-A Winston-Salem, it didn't take long for DePino to earn a promotion to Double-A Birmingham. Across two levels of minor league baseball this season, he hit 21 doubles and 25 home runs, drove in 82 runs and posted an .845 OPS.
He's currently the No. 22-ranked prospect in the White Sox organization, and the Arizona Fall League will provide another opportunity to test his offensive profile against some of the best young talent in baseball.
IF Colby Shelton (No. 24 Prospect)
One round before DePino, the White Sox selected Florida infielder Colby Shelton in the sixth round with the 166th overall selection in the 2025 MLB Draft. Shelton was widely viewed as one of the draft picks who could move through the organization quickly after signing for $447,000.
From the moment he joined the White Sox organization, he had one of the most intriguing offensive profiles in the system.
During his college career, Shelton often had to choose between batting average and slug. His freshman year was at Alabama, where he launched 25 home runs and posted a 1.148 OPS during the 2023 season. He then transferred to Florida and once again hit 20 home runs for the Gators. But this time, his batting average plummeted to .254 and his OPS went with it, dropping to .925 on the year.
Making a conscious effort to improve his bat-to-ball ability, Shelton raised his batting average all the way to .377 with a .458 on-base percentage during 2025, but he hit only seven home runs for the Gators despite posting a 1.064 OPS. Despite some inconsistencies in the profile, the White Sox saw clear offensive tools to work with, and in 2026 they've started to see the fruits of their labor.
Shelton was one of the most dangerous hitters in minor league baseball at the start of the year, posting a 1.125 OPS in High-A Winston-Salem. He's been a bit more hot and cold since getting promoted to Double-A Birmingham, but his overall numbers on the season include 127 games played, 34 doubles, 24 home runs, 14 stolen bases and an .826 OPS.
He's the No. 24-ranked prospect in the White Sox farm system and has seen consistent defensive time at second base, third base and shortstop throughout the 2026 season.
The next step for the White Sox is getting Shelton to hit this way in the higher levels of the minor leagues against better competition, making him a no-brainer selection for the Arizona Fall League as he continues to develop.
OF Caleb Bonemer (No. 2 Prospect)
The ninth and final player representing the Chicago White Sox in the Arizona Fall League this year will be Caleb Bonemer, the No. 2-ranked prospect in the White Sox farm system and the No. 29-ranked prospect in all of baseball.
Bonemer, 20, exceeded all expectations during his second professional season, spending fairly equal time between High-A Winston-Salem and Double-A Birmingham and being just as formidable at both levels. With a .930 OPS, Bonemer hit 29 doubles and 37 home runs, totaled 92 RBIs and added 17 stolen bases during his second professional season.
He's continued to impress defensively since turning pro, but spent the majority of his time at third base in 2026.
That, however, is probably not where he'll be in the Arizona Fall League. Bonemer was actually listed as an outfielder in the preliminary AFL roster reveal. The White Sox have discussed making a shift with Bonemer and giving him an opportunity in center field, and he started nine games there at the end of the 2026 season with Double-A Birmingham, totaling 79.2 defensive innings.
Sure, this is an opportunity to continue developing the bat and for Bonemer to see more high-end pitching. But when you rip 37 home runs as a 20-year-old and have consistently produced at every level of your professional career, there's little doubt that you can hit.
The real piece here is the White Sox trying to develop Bonemer with more innings in the outfield as they prepare him for a potential MLB debut in 2027.
