Shortstop and #3 prospect in the Chicago White Sox organization Colson Montgomery must be protected from The Rule 5 Draft.
Tuesday, November 19th at 6 p.m. is the deadline for when MLB teams have to finalize their 40-man roster with players who are eligible for the Rule 5 Draft which will take place in December. This year the Chicago White Sox have three names eligible for this years draft, one of whom is #3 prospect Shortstop Colson Montgomery.
What is the Rule 5 Draft?
The Rule 5 Draft is a draft that is: “Held each December, the Rule 5 Draft allows clubs without a full 40-man roster to select certain non-40-man roster players from other clubs. Clubs draft in reverse order of the standings from the previous season. Players signed at age 18 or younger need to be added to their club’s 40-Man roster within five seasons or they become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft. Players who signed at age 19 or older need to be protected within four seasons.”
The 22-year old Montgomery is the Chicago White Sox #3 prospect and is ranked by the MLB as their #37 overall prospect. Drafted by the White Sox in the 1st round (22nd overall) of the 2021 MLB Amateur Draft, the 6’3” Montgomery spent the 2024 season at Triple-A where he struggled overall. In 130 games Montgomery managed to hit 18 HRs, 21 Doubles, 3 Triples, 63 RBIs, and 69 BBs in 485 At-Bats, while slashing .214/.329/.381 for a .710 OPS.
Even though Montgomery had a disappointing 2024 campaign, there may be a bright spot to look forward to. Participating in this years Arizona Fall League, Montgomery in 11 games (32 at-bats) had 2 doubles, 3 HRs, 11 RBI, 4 stolen bases, 10 BBs, and slashed .313/.511/.656 with an OPS of 1.167. Even in a small sample size such as this these numbers should be something that Chicago White Sox fans should be excited about.
Currently the Chicago White Sox have 38 players on their 40-man roster with the recent signing of Austin Slater so there’s still wiggle room for them to add Colson Montgomery and possible another player through sign or trade. Montgomery once added to the 40-man figures to be the everyday Shortstop come 2025 with the White Sox deciding to move on from Nicky Lopez who played the bulk of the game there last season.
The 22-year old Montgomery has a lot of expectations behind him coming into this season. The hope is that he can prove to be the player we’re seeing in the Arizona Fall League and not who the one from last season, even though he had an above .700 OPS which is a good sign. The Chicago White Sox are certainly going to retain Colson and most likely have him be their opening day Shortstop that they intend to build around.
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