South Side Sox Top Prospect No. 71: Shawn Goosenberg

Shawn Goosenberg

Second Baseman
6´1´´
195 pounds
Age: 22
SSS rank among all second basemen in the system: 3

Despite stellar performances overseas and at Calabasas High, Shawn Goosenberg’s slight, 6´1´´, 180-pound frame and modest statistics made for a quiet college recruiting process. So once his coaches got in contact with the staff at Northwestern, Goosenberg jumped at the chance to attend a top academic school and play baseball in the Big Ten. By the second month of the 2019 season, Goosenberg was a regular in the Cats lineup; he finished the year with a .288 batting average and was selected to the All-Big Ten Freshman Team and All-Big Ten Third Team, even as NU finished 23-27 overall and ninth in the conference.

Goosenberg continued his upward trajectory at the beginning of his sophomore season, translating offseason work in the weight room into tangible offensive improvements. Then, COVID-19 cut the season after just 13 games. What an impressive season it was, however, as Goosenberg slashed .444/.500/.704 with a homer in 27 at-bats before the pandemic struck. Goosenberg continued working on his game over the summer, a regimen that included playing for the Kalamazoo Mac Daddies in the Northwoods League in Kalamazoo, Mich.

Prior to 2021, Goosenberg had clubbed just one career homer in 230 combined plate appearances for the Wildcats. That all changed in his junior season, however, as he swatted 14 homers in 169 plate appearances. For the year, Goosenberg also mashed 12 doubles and stole 10 bases while producing an impressive .362/.426/.717 slash line. As a result of his efforts, he was selected in the 19th round of the MLB Draft by the White Sox.

After slashing a robust .273/.385/.545 in an abbreviated six-game stint with the ACL squad, Goosenberg struggled with Kannapolis (.213/.351/.338 and a 98 wRC+ in 29 games). Combined with both teams, he slashed .225/.358/.382 with eight doubles, two homers, four stolen bases, 15 walks (12.2%) and 39 strikeouts (31.7%).

Goosenberg will likely begin the 2022 season with Winston-Salem, as it seems likely that Colson Montgomery and Wes Kath will handle starting gigs on the left side of next year’s Kannapolis infield and Wilber Sánchez may begin next year as the Cannon Ballers’ second baseman.

2022 South Side Sox Top 100 White Sox Prospects

71. Shawn Goosenberg, 2B
72. Zack Muckenhirn, LHRP
73. Cameron Butler, CF
74. Godwin Bennett, RF
75. Logan Glass, CF
76. Dario Borrero, 1B
77. Craig Dedelow, RF
78. Carlos Hinestroza, RHRP
79. Gunnar Troutwine, C
80. Kade Mechals, RHSP
81: Caberea Weaver, CF
82. Layant Tapia, SS
83. Homer Cruz, RHRP
84. Kaleb Roper, RHSP
85. Jerry Burke, RHSP
86. Emerson Talavera, RHRP
87. Isaiah Carranza, RHSP
88. Davis Martin, RHSP
89. Tyler Osik, 1B
90. Samil Polanco, 3B
91. Manuel Veloz, RHRP
92. Pauly Milto, RHRP
93. Fraser Ellard, LHRP
94. Colby Smelley, C
95. Manuel Guariman, C
96. Everhett Hazelwood, RHRP
97. Garrett Schoenle, LHRP
98. Kyle Kubat, LHRP
99. Anderson Comas, RF
100. Jake Elliott, RHRP