2026 White Sox International Signing Preview
FutureSox
The new international signing period for Major League Baseball opens once again on January 15, 2026. Most of the players who will sign have had unofficial agreements in place for years and this year will be no different. Unlike last year with the presence of Roki Sasaki, this year’s class of players will be of the more traditional variety.
Turning over the club’s international operation was a major priority for Chris Getz as the reshaping of the organization is ongoing. Special assistant David Keller stewarded his first class in charge in 2025 but similarly to this year and even 2027, the nature of this marketplace dictates that it’s still full of players originally scouted and procured by former boss Marco Paddy.
The top signing from last year was 18-year-old Cuban infielder Alejandro Cruz who struggled for much of the year after inking for $2 million. He likely plays stateside this season and debuts in Arizona with the complex league group. Dominican teenage outfielder Frank Mieses posted a 118 wRC+ in the Dominican Summer League and played in the DSL All Star Game. He ended up being the best player in their class.
There were some new additions to last year’s class as well though. Keller and his staff; including Louis Silverio and Adrian Puig, added Cuban righty Yobal Rodriguez who went on to pitch in the DSL All Star Game as well. The 17-year-old throws his fastball in the low 90’s with a potential plus changeup. Rodriguez posted a 2.97 ERA with 33 strikeouts in 30.1 innings.
6-0 right hander Diego Perez was a late addition out of the Dominican Republic and the youngest player from the White Sox’s signing class was recently highlighted at Baseball America for being a sleeper. Despite posting a 5.12 ERA last year with 33 strikeouts and 22 walks in 31.2 innings, Perez possesses a big breaking curveball with tight rotation and good depth along with a 93 mph fastball.
Another late addition for the club was Cuban outfielder Osniel Castillo. The White Sox are excited about this player and the 19-year-old speedy center fielder posted a .375/.444/.542 line with a 152 wRC+ in a tiny sample in the Dominican Summer League. The 5-11, 170 pounder is likely headed to the Arizona Complex League this summer.
A New Frontier for The White Sox
Back in September, Keller spoke with the media and James Fegan of Sox Machine highlighted some of the special assistant’s thoughts on “fixing a broken process” that has left the organization behind the industry on the international front. New staff has been hired under Keller, new scouting systems have been put into place, data and technology implementation has been revamped and the club has begun to restore their scouting presence in Asia and the Dominican Republic.
The White Sox are currently building a new facility in Boca Chica that is expected to be ready for use by the 2027 season. It will help the franchise land players and allow them to field two Dominican Summer League squads in the future. Recent front office addition Carlos Rodriguez has experience in this regard and the new assistant general manager; previously with the Rays should be a significant addition for a growing front office.
White Sox officials have noted that the 2027 international class will be their first mostly brought in by this new scouting group and the franchise is very excited about the potential to add highly ranked prospects starting in 2028. There’s no reason why the White Sox can’t change their strategy in this finite market and become a power in the industry.
It was reported in September that the White Sox have reached a pre-agreement with Dominican Braston Basker for the 2030 international class. He’s expected to be the top player in the class and the agreement is for $6 million. A lot can change before then in regards to the market factors but being the leaders for the top players in the class is a promising change for the organization. Fegan reported that the club is expected to land Dominican infielder Ransiel Herrera for over $4 million in the 2029 class as well.
Restoring the franchise’s presence in the Dominican Republic was a significant hurdle to climb and Keller and his staff have already made a major dent. The White Sox hadn’t had any real presence in the pacific rim either and that changed with the addition of Munetaka Murakami. The White Sox have been scouting in Asia more extensively and they hired veteran evaluator Satoshi Takahashi as well.
How the System Works
The White Sox are designated as a large market club due to revenues and market size. During the upcoming international signing period, they’ll be afforded the right to spend $6,679,200 in the marketplace, similarly to the other large market revenue generators in their tier. Major League Baseball will once again allow teams to trade unused bonus pool space beginning on January 15th. Players must be 16-years-old to sign. Signings for $10,000 or less don’t count toward a club’s bonus pool.
Small market clubs who received a Competitive Balance B selection in last July’s draft will be able to spend a total of $8,034,900 on players during the next international signing period. Small market clubs who received a Competitive Balance A pick will be able to spend $7,357,100 on international bonuses. Large market organizations will be able to spend $6,679,200.
Multiple clubs will be required to forfeit international bonus pool space due to free agent signings as well. The Boston Red Sox, San Diego Padres and Toronto Blue Jays will be able to spend $5,940,000 after each team was docked $500K apiece for signing Alex Bregman, Nick Pivetta and Anthony Santander respectively after they declined qualifying offers.
The Houston Astros, New York Mets, New York Yankees and San Francisco Giants will be able to spend $5,4440,000. They each forfeited $1 million in space to sign Christian Walker, Juan Soto, Max Fried and Willy Adames after they each declined the QO as well.
2025-2026 International Bonus Pools
$8,034,900: Arizona Diamondbacks, Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Guardians, Colorado Rockies, Kansas City Royals, Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals
$7,357,100: Athletics, Cincinnati Reds, Detroit Tigers, Miami Marlins, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays
$6,679,200: Atlanta Braves, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia Phillies, Texas Rangers, Washington Nationals
$5,940,000: Boston Red Sox, San Diego Padres, Toronto Blue Jays
$5,440,000: Houston Astros, New York Mets, New York Yankees, San Francisco Giants
Head of the Class
Ben Badler of Baseball America is the best in the industry at covering the international market. His international bonus board is up at the site and players are listed in order of bonus amount. Jesse Borek has also been covering the market for MLB Pipeline. His write-ups are tremendous but the publication has decided to not link players to teams anymore which makes consumption a bit more difficult. Sanchez ranks players traditionally while Badler just puts them in order by bonus received. Francys Romero’s work at his substack is tremendous as well and he’s highlighted multiple White Sox additions.
Many scouts believe that Venezuelan shortstop Luis Hernandez is the top player in the international class and he’s expected to sign with the San Francisco Giants for the majority of their bonus pool at around $5 million. The 5-10, 180 pounder hit .346/.386/.452 in a Venezuelan professional league and he displays a mature offensive approach with 20 home run potential in the future.
Venezuelan outfielder Francisco Renteria will sign with the Philadelphia Phillies for around $4 million and the 6-3, 200 pounder is a physical, powerful athlete with bat speed and some of the best power in the class. He’s a center fielder with 30 homer upside. Another Venezuelan outfielder; Angeibel Gomez will ink with the Kansas City Royals for over $3 million and he has raw power and hitting ability as a center fielder and some think he’s the best player from Venezuela in the class.
Dominican shortstop Wandy Asigen made some noise as he recently flipped commitments from the Yankees to the New York Mets for $3.8 million. Asigen is a 6-0, 175 pound left-handed hitting shortstop with explosive bat speed, extensive tournament success and the potential to stay at shortstop long-term. Dominican shortstop Victor Valdez is a 6-1, 185 pounder with bat speed and power and he’ll sign with the Rays for $3.5 million.
Manuel Bolivar is the top catcher in the international class and he’ll sign with the Detroit Tigers out of Venezuela. The 6-3, 190 pounder is an athletic backstop with plus raw power and he profiles as a power hitting catcher. The Baltimore Orioles will also sign 6-4, 180 pound left-handed pitcher Andri Hidalgo out of the Dominican Republic for around $700K. He’s the best pitcher in the class and pumps his fastball up to 95 mph with a plus slider and a high ceiling.
Chicago White Sox Outlook
The White Sox have commitments from two Venezuelan teenagers that will lead their international class in 2026. Catcher Fernando Graterol is the #31 overall player in the class according to MLB Pipeline and he’ll receive the 25th largest bonus per Baseball America. Outfielder Sebastian Romero is listed as receiving the 30th largest bonus for the big board. Both players are expected to sign for around $1.5 million.
Graterol is a 17-year-old with a strong frame and broad shoulders. There is some more physical projection to come for the 6-1, 175 pounder and he possesses some of the best raw power for a catcher in the 2026 class. The right-handed batter could possesses a power over hit profile and projects for 20 plus homers annually. The teenager has a very strong arm but needs to improve both his blocking and receiving. He’s expected to remain at catcher.
Romero is 6-2, 175 pounds and hits from the left side. The Venezuelan has a lean frame with a sound, fluid swing and a feel to hit already. The teenager manipulates the barrel to square up pitches with good contact skills. He has doubles power now but could have 20 homer potential with anticipated strength gains. Romero is a good athlete with above-average speed and should stay in center field at least initially.
On Francys Romero’s substack, he highlights four additional signings to come from Venezuela as well. Infielder Carlos Vielma and catcher Ronald Cardozo will each receive $400,000. Righty Jefferson Timaur will sign for under $100K as well. There’s also a pitcher expected to sign from Panama as well and it’s for less than $100K as well. The righty is Javier Concepcion.
6-3 200 pound right hander Roderic Ramirez was expected to sign with the San Diego Padres in the upcoming international class. The organization let him return to the market in September however and David Keller and his crew agreed to a deal with the Dominican righty back in October for over $400,000. He’s one of the top arms in the international class and trains at the Edward Cruz Academy in the Dominican Republic.
Ramirez displays smooth mechanics with an effortless delivery with long limbs already and the frame to add more strength. The 17-year-old already has a fastball that touches 96-97 mph and he projects for 100 mph upside in the future as the fastball already posts around 2,200 RPM. Ramirez throws a slider and changeup as well. He’ll be interesting to follow in the Dominican Summer League.
According to Romero as well, the Sox will ink Dominican righty Franchel Crisostomo and the veteran scribe listed the 6-3 pitcher as a sleeper in the class. The Dominican teenager oozes projection and the team reportedly believes there’s some high level upside potentially. Crisostomo possesses a three-pitch mix with an explosive and well-balanced delivery. He throws the fastball around 90-93 mph while displaying an 80-83 mph changeup with a slider as well. The player is expected to sign for $350,000.
Similarly to the Venezuelan agreements, Romero reported on five additional agreements for the White Sox that are expected from the Dominican Republic. Outfielder Andriu Vargas is expected to receive the largest bonus for around $500,000. Shortstop Felix Lebron is expected to receive $300K as well. Lefty Wilberki Heredia and righties Jordany Marte and Erlon Laureano are expected to land low dollar deals too.
In total, the White Sox have reported agreements with 13 players. They will add seven pitchers and seven position players that we know of currently and they’ve committed around $6.6 million so far to the international class. As a large market club, the White Sox open the period with $6,679,200 to spend so they’d still have around $500,000 to add players in some capacity.
