This story was excerpted from Scott Merkin’s White Sox Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
CHICAGO – Paul Janish, the White Sox director of player development, has a theory regarding infielder Jacob Gonzalez, the organization’s No. 24 prospect according to MLB Pipeline.
“He’s probably a terrible poker player,” a smiling Janish told MLB.com. “He is a very honest kid, very transparent is probably the best word.”
Ask Gonzalez, 23, about his status within the White Sox, and the left-handed hitter provides a straightforward response. That attitude leads to the poker reference from Janish, with no nonsense, no bluffing involved.
Extra expectations were attached to Gonzalez’s first-round selection in the 2023 Draft, coming from a championship career for the University of Mississippi. He understands other players in the system have moved past him and into the Major Leagues, but in his second stint with Triple-A Charlotte, Gonzalez feels the most comfortable he has been in professional baseball.
“At this point I’m just needing to reprove myself and show that I can help out at the big league level,” Gonzalez said in a recent interview. “It would be awesome, but it’s not my decision. I’m going to try to force their hand and do my best to make them have to make a tough decision.”
“To his credit, [he’s a] really mature kid who understands that ‘When I get there, I want to stay there, and if we need to get it right, it might take me a little bit more time,'” said White Sox director of hitting Ryan Fuller. “That's what it is right here. He's being present.”
Present, and impressive overall.
During Friday’s contest against Nashville, Gonzalez finished 3-for-4 with two home runs and seven RBIs. He is 9-for-27 with nine runs scored, four home runs and 15 RBIs over his last eight games, while he’s slashing .267/.385/.544 with seven homers, 18 runs scored and 23 RBIs for the season.
Not only is Gonzalez finding success offensively, but he has added to his defensive versatility by playing first base along with second, third and shortstop.
“People have been asking me, but I grew up playing everywhere,” Gonzalez said. “I didn’t start playing shortstop until my sophomore year of high school. I learned every position.
“I played mostly outfield in travel ball when I was young and then I got moved to second and third and played first every once in a while. It took maybe like one game or two games to figure out the little details at first base, but other than that, it’s been good.”
A great deal of energy has gone into Gonzalez’s swing and offensive approach since he joined the White Sox. But through his offseason time spent in Arizona at Camelback Ranch, in Mississippi and working with his dad, Jess, in California, Gonzalez arrived at the best mix between what works for him and what works for the White Sox.
This mix even has a connection to the hitting style of Matt Carpenter, who launched 179 homers with an .814 OPS over a 14-year career.
“When I hit, I learned this offseason my first movement when I load is I want to bend at the waist and go down,” Gonzalez said. “In my previous setup, I was already starting with my waist bent so my first move was to go lower. The lower I got, the less room I had to get my arms through correctly.
“I asked them, ‘You guys remember Matt Carpenter. He used to lean back all the way.’ I didn’t want to do that, but if I started upright like that, my first move is going to be forward. It’s going to get me in a good position. We tried it out and it worked good.”
Driving the ball to left field represents a new positive in Gonzalez’s offensive output, witnessed during Spring Training and carried over into the Minor League season. His recent characterization of his Charlotte start was “decent and something to build off,” but that he “can definitely do better.”
Those comments came before his big game Friday. Those comments also reinforce Gonzalez’s lack of poker face where his game is concerned.
“Our goal now is not [to] be good in Triple-A. It's how do we get you to the big leagues,” Fuller said. “He's one who has been, Spring Training to the start of the year, really diligent in his work and it's been great to show up. He knows what it's going to take to get him here and he's working really hard at it.”
“I’m just taking every day a step at a time,” Gonzalez said. “I’m trying to be the best I can be right now and if it ends up being good enough to go up, that’s awesome. If not, then I just have to keep working as a hitter and try to improve myself.”