Former Ole Miss star Jacob Gonzalez moves up to AA, joins Tim Elko on the Birmingham Barons
OXFORD, Miss. — Ole Miss fans might just have a new favorite minor league baseball team. The Chicago White Sox announced yesterday that former Rebel star shortstop Jacob Gonzalez has been moved up to the Birmingham Barons (AA). He joins former captain and Ole Miss hero Tim Elko, who also plays for the Barons.
The Chicago White Sox are promoting Jacob Gonzalez to the Birmingham Barons (AA), per @_chaseford pic.twitter.com/hcsZdQZyj3
— Milb Central (@milb_central) May 20, 2024
Gonzo at Ole Miss
Chicago selected Gonzalez with its first-round pick last year. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound lefty slugger helped lead the Rebels to a College World Series championship in 2022 and was D1Baseball.com’s National Freshman of the Year the previous season. Over three college seasons, he batted .319 with a .988 OPS, 40 homers and 158 RBIs. He also compiled more walks (123 total) than strikeouts (94) in each season.
His outstanding freshman season earned him an invite to the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team, where he played after winning the CWS in 2022.
During his sophomore year, Gonzalez clubbed a personal-best 18 homers with 52 RBIs while leading the team in runs (73), walks (50) and triples (3). The season ended with plenty of fireworks as Gonzo went 3-for-4 with a solo shot, two RBIs and two runs scored in the championship clincher against Oklahoma.
CRUSHED AND THE CROWD EXPLODES‼️
📺 ESPN #MCWS x @OleMissBSB pic.twitter.com/IqMS0211Tg
— NCAA Baseball (@NCAABaseball) June 26, 2022
In his junior season, Gonzalez was named a Brooks Wallace Award semifinalist and Second Team All-SEC as he batted .327/.435/.564 with 10 homers and 51 RBIs. He ranked as MLB Pipeline’s No. 18 Draft prospect and was selected by the White Sox at No. 15 overall in July, 2023. Gonzalez signed for a bonus of $3.9 million and made his professional debut in July in the Rookie-level Arizona Complex League.
With the Dash
This season with the Winston-Salem Dash, Gonzalez is hitting .273 with three home runs, seven doubles and 15 RBI. His OBP is .364.
Jacob Gonzalez (2023 15th overall pick) went 4-4 with a home run and a walk tonight in high A for the Winston-Salem Dash.
Gonzalez now has a .298 batting average with a .854 OPS this season.
pic.twitter.com/y7oEKDk3zT— WhiteSoxMuse (@WhiteSoxMuse) May 9, 2024
Jacob Gonzalez is very quietly in the middle of a 21 game on base streak, dating back to August 13th of last year.
Has opened this season very strong, with a 161 wRC+ through Winston-Salem’s first 10 games. pic.twitter.com/xJ51diubl6
— Dylan (@NotCease) April 18, 2024
This past September, Gonzalez told MiLB.com he was working on his hitting — and it seems to have produced great results.
“This past season I didn’t hit that good. It’s not going to be the same. I’m going to hit better than that. Just working on how my body moves when I’m hitting and perfecting it so that it’s easier. There are already too many disadvantages while you are hitting.“
Jacob Gonzalez ahead of this season
#WhiteSox 2023 first rounder Jacob Gonzalez on swing adjustments this spring
His swing has appeared to be much more fluid this spring and he seems happy with where he’s at right now. @FutureSox pic.twitter.com/nBTNoD6UCx
— Elijah Evans (@ElijahEv8) March 9, 2024
Gonzo joins the Captain, Tim Elko
Elko has been making noise of his own in his short professional career having jumped two levels in a single season, also now playing for the Barons.
We all love big man triples. Tim Elko with a leadoff triple off Rhett Lowder. #Barons #WhiteSox pic.twitter.com/q7yNzB6cvT
— FutureSox (@FutureSox) May 18, 2024
Currently, Elko is hitting .264 with three homers, eight doubles and 11 runs batted in. While he is enjoying his time in the minors, Elko told The Rebel Walk recently that his main goal is to learn and get better everyday.
“It’s been a lot of fun (playing pro ball),” Elko said.
“I started last year down in low-A (classification) and I’ve got to play on all the teams up there so far, it’s been great. I’ve loved all the coaches and all the players, everybody that has been in our draft class and the players that have been here, it’s been awesome.“
Tim Elko on his career thus far
Here’s more of our visit with Tim:
Barons headed to Biloxi
Ole Miss fans, you’re in luck! The Barons will be playing the Biloxi Shuckers in Biloxi, Miss. this week. The schedule is as follows:
Tuesday, May 21: 6:35 pm CT
Wednesday, May 22: 6:35 pm CT
Thursday, May 23: 6:35 pm CT
Friday, May 24: 6:35 pm CT
Saturday, May 25: 6:05 pm CT
Hotty Toddy and best of luck to Tim and Gonzo!
Evelyn Van Pelt
Evelyn has covered sports for over two decades, beginning her journalism career as a sports writer for a newspaper in Austin, Texas. She attended Texas A&M and majored in English. Evelyn's love for Ole Miss began when her daughter Katie attended the university on a volleyball scholarship. Evelyn created the Rebel Walk in 2013 and has served as publisher and managing editor since its inception.
