White Sox Future Star Put On Hold! Top Prospect Demoted to Minors
The White Sox announced Tuesday that they’ve optioned top shortstop prospect Colson Montgomery to Triple-A Charlotte. He’ll begin the season there. Chicago also optioned righties Nick Nastrini and Owen White to Charlotte. Non-roster first baseman Tim Elko was reassigned to minor league camp as well.
The Montgomery news doesn’t register as a huge surprise, given how his spring has played out. The 23-year-old is widely ranked among MLB’s 100 best prospects, but back spasms in camp slowed him, and he has only taken nine plate appearances thus far. The former No. 22 overall pick is also coming off a rough 2024 season in Triple-A. Though he hit well for the season’s final five weeks, he finished the year with an ugly .214/.329/.381 slash (88 wRC+) and a 28.6% strikeout rate. A big spring showing certainly could’ve thrust Montgomery into the mix for a roster spot, but he’ll head back to Charlotte and work toward a big league debut that will very likely happen at some point in 2025.
With Montgomery headed for the minors, the White Sox’s options at shortstop include Jacob Amaya, Lenyn Sosa and Brooks Baldwin. Prospect Chase Meidroth, acquired from the Red Sox in the Garrett Crochet trade, is still in the mix but not on the 40-man roster. The 23-year-old Meidroth had a nice year in Triple-A Worcester in 2024 but has struggled in his limited spring work thus far. Amaya has seen the most time at short this spring out of any option for the position.
The White Sox only selected Montgomery to the 40-man roster this past November to protect him in his first offseason of Rule 5 eligibility. As such, this will be just the first of his three option years being burned (assuming he stays in Triple-A for over 20 days). The Sox could’ve considered bringing Montgomery north to secure future draft picks under MLB’s prospect promotion incentive (PPI) program. Still, between his back issue, last year’s rough numbers and a 1-for-9 performance with five strikeouts when he was in the spring lineup, they’ll go another direction.
Nastrini started eight big league games last year but was tagged for an ERA north of 7.00 and walked more batters than he punched out. He whiffed a quarter of his Triple-A opponents but was still walloped there. He’ll likely stay stretched out as a starter in Charlotte and should get multiple opportunities to establish himself in the majors in 2025.
White is a former top prospect with the Rangers who bounced around the league via waivers this offseason. He split 2024 between the bullpen and rotation for Texas’ top affiliate. White only pitched one official inning in a Cactus League game this spring.
