JUST IN: Chicago’s rare grab of the top pick for the first time since 1977 revives the conversation around the biggest draft choices in White Sox history. DD
With the White Sox set to pick first overall for the first time since 1977, here are some of the team’s highest picks in history.
The White Sox got the most exciting news they’ve had in years on Tuesday evening, as the team won MLB’s draft lottery and earned the first overall pick in the 2026 MLB draft.
It’s been nearly 50 years since the White Sox picked this high and it’ll be a unique opportunity to add a top player to an already-promising farm system.
With the draft on the minds of Sox fans everywhere, let’s take a look at the five highest draft picks in White Sox history and whether or not they panned out.
1971- White Sox select 1B Danny Goodwin with the 1st overall pick
The White Sox used the first overall pick on Peoria, Illinois native Danny Goodwin back in 2025.
Goodwin made history as the first number one draft pick in baseball history to elect not to sign.
Goodwin was offered a signing bonus between $50k and $80k, but chose to honor his college commitment to Southern University instead.
Four years later, Goodwin made history again as the first player to be drafted first overall twice when the California Angels took him with the first pick in the 1975 draft.
Goodwin would go on to play seven seasons in major league baseball, but never played more than 59 games in a season or lived up to top draft pick level expectations.
Goodwin’s best season came in 1979 with the Twins, where he hit .289 with five home runs in 58 games.
Safe to say Goodwin was a top pick that didn’t materialize for the White Sox.
1977- White Sox select OF Harold Baines with the 1st overall pick
The White Sox first overall pick in 2026 will be their first top pick since the team took Harold Baines in 1977.
Baines went on to play 22 seasons in major league baseball, including parts of 14 with the White Sox.
Harold Baines is a six-time all-star, finishing his career with 384 home runs, a .289 batting average, and a 121 career OPS+.
He was, somewhat controversially, elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame by the Today’s Game Era Committee in 2019, making him just the fourth top overall draft pick to be elected to the Hall.
Baines never had a season with overwhelming numbers, but he was a model of consistency for many years in the major leagues.
Almost every season of his career featured a .285-.300 batting average with 15-25 home runs. There’s no question that Harold’s White Sox career was a success.
