Crafty lefty may not overpower, but he sure as hell gets guys out
Lucas Gordon
Left-Handed Starting Pitcher
6´1´´
193 pounds
Age: 23
2024 South Side Sox Top Prospect Ranking 59
2024 High Level Winston-Salem (High-A)
Age relative to high level -1.0 years
SSS rank among all left-handed starters in the system 7
Overall 2024 stats 9-5 ⚾️ 23 starts ⚾️ 113 IP ⚾️ 2.23 ERA ⚾️ 1.159 WHIP ⚾️ 98 K ⚾️ 61 BB
With the 179th overall pick in the 2023 MLB draft, the White Sox selected LHSP Lucas Gordon.
After a successful freshman season pitching out of the Texas bullpen, Gordon moved to the Longhorns rotation and put together two more good seasons utilizing a three-pitch arsenal — fastball, changeup and slider, while mixing in an occasional cutter. In his final season in Austin (2023), Gordon had 17 starts and appeared in 19 games for Texas over 102 2⁄3 innings. He didn’t strike out a lot of batters, just barely more than one strikeout every inning (103), while walking 34 batters.
However, his changeup gave right-handed hitters fits all season, and they only hit .227/.304/.382 against Gordon. He did a nice job of killing velocity and spin on the pitch, creating a 90th percentile disparity between it and his high-80s/low-90s fastball. With the pitch’s above-average movement metrics and Gordon’s command of the pitch, his changeup is the offering that likely invited the Sox to make him a Top 200 pick.
Though not overpowering, Gordon’s fastball generates above-average vertical break, and he wasn’t afraid to use it at the top of the zone even at his well below-average velo. The pitch’s profile along with its pairing with his changeup allowed this plan to work well.
His slider has a Gyro shape, and Gordon doesn’t really have a feel to spin it at high rates, yet it got great results in 2023 likely to do its late-breaking nature. Gordon also avoids the heart of the strike zone well and generally has good command.
After a cup of coffee pro debut after the draft, Gordon got to work in 2024 and, generally pitching appropriate to his age, crushed batters. His 14 starts at Low-A worked out to a laughable 1.89 ERA. And his second half promotion to High-A invited similar results, as his ERA “jump” to 2.81 would still have placed him in the Top 10 of all White Sox full-season MiLB starters.
Gordon’s Baseball Cube player ratings
vs. Power 89 (+1 from last season)
Hittable 89 (+1)
Durability 82 (0)
Walks 65 (-8)
K/BB 60 (-11)
Strikeouts 43 (-8)
Average 71.33 (-4.17)
There is no reason whatsoever not to challenge Gordon in Double-A, right from the jump in 2025.
That said, pitchers who fit Gordon’s profile (pedestrian velocity couched in a tricky three- or four-pitch mix) can often breeze through lower levels and come to a dead stop in the higher minors. Contingent with his Double-A challenge will be a necessary uptick in command, as the one worrisome trait during Gordon’s short High-A stint was an increase in walks.
2025 South Side Sox Top 100 White Sox Prospects
49. Lucas Gordon, LHSP
50. Aaron Combs, RHRP (traded to Phillies on January 1)
51. DJ Gladney, RF
52. Abraham Núñez, CF
53. Andre Lipcius, 1B
54. Shawn Goosenberg, 1B
55. Caden Connor, 1B
56. Mario Camilletti, 2B
57. Jake Peppers, RHSP
58. Ryan Burrowes, SS
59. Garrett Schoenle, LHRP
60. Jackson Appel, C
61. Tommy Vail, LHSP
62. Bryce Collins, RHRP
63. Tanner McDougal, RHSP
64. Stiven Flores, C
65. T.J. McCants, CF
66. Gil Luna, LHRP
67. Fraser Ellard, LHRP
68. Zach Franklin, RHRP
69. Drew Dalquist, RHRP
70. Nick Altermatt, RHRP
71. Carson Jacobs, RHRP
72. Alec Makarewicz, 1B
73. Jacob Burke, CF
74. Calvin Harris, C
75. Terrell Tatum, CF
76. Phil Fox, RHRP
77. Reudis Diaz, RHSP
78. Jurdrick Profar, SS
79. Drew McDaniel, RHSP
80. Michael Turner, C
81. Caleb Freeman, RHRP
82. Braden Shewmake, SS (designated for assignment on January 1, claimed by Royals)
83. Connor McCullough, RHSP
84. Shane Murphy, LHSP
85. Mikey Kane, 1B
86. Daniel González, LHRP
87. Wes Kath, 3B
88. Pierce George, RHRP
89. Tristan Stivors, RHRP
90. Anthony Hoopii-Tuionetoa, RHRP
91. Chase Plymell, RHRP
92. Eddie Park, CF
93. Loidel Chapelli, 2B
94. Adam Hackenberg, C
95. Adrian Gil, 1B
96. Jared Kelley, RHRP
97. Lyle Miller-Green, 1B
98. Marcelo Alcala, RF
99. Drake Logan, LF
100. Cole McConnell, CF