Jacob Gonzalez drafted 15th overall by the Chicago White Sox in the first round of MLB Draft
The first current or potential Ole Miss baseball player has realized their dreams of playing professional baseball and it was not a shock to anyone as Jacob Gonzalez became the newest Rebel taken in the first round of the MLB Draft.
Gonzalez was not going to wait long on Sunday but barely broke a sweat being drafted by the Chicago White Sox as the 15th overall pick. The pick comes with a slot value of $4.49 million
This night is one that has been expected for Gonzalez since arrived at Ole Miss prior to the 2021 season. He becomes the Rebels eighth player to be drafted in the first round and is the first shortstop to be drafted in the first round in program history.
Five former Ole Miss players have been drafted in the first round: Tucker Ashford (1973), Drew Pomeranz (2010), Ryan Rolison (2018), Gunnar Hoglund (2021) and Gonzalez.
Three other former Rebels were drafted in the supplemental portion of the first round: Michael Rosamond (1999), Chris Coghlan (2006) and Lance Lynn (2008).
Related: WATCH: A big-leaguer by 2025? Ole Miss star shortstop Gonzalez a sleep away from realizing MLB dream
Gonzalez is reunited with former Rebels teammate Tim Elko who was drafted by the White Sox last year. Elko was promoted up to Single-A ball by the White Sox last month after a strong start to his season.
During his time at Ole Miss Gonzalez started 186 out of a possible 186 games over his three-year career. He was a first-team All-SEC selection in 65 starts as a sophomore — a year in which he led the Rebels in runs scored (73), walks (73) and triples (3). Gonzalez finished second in RBI (52), total bases (135) and home runs (18). He was third in slugging percentage (.558) and hits (66).
Gonzalez was also a key piece of the Rebels run to Omaha and securing the program’s first national championship in 2022 when Ole Miss went 10-1 in June.
