Eloy Jiménez

Career

Jiménez was regarded as the top international free agent for 2013, with MLB.com describing him as a five-tool player who impressed scouts with his intelligence, speed, and gap-to-gap power during workouts. He signed with the Chicago Cubs in July 2013 for a $2.8 million signing bonus. He made his professional debut in 2014 with the rookie-level Arizona League Cubs, where a shoulder injury limited him to 164 plate appearances and a .268 on-base percentage, though scouts remained optimistic due to his age and physical ability.

In 2015 he was promoted to short-season Single-A with the Eugene Emeralds, improving his on-base percentage to .328 and hitting seven home runs in 250 plate appearances. He spent the 2016 season with the Low-A South Bend Cubs, batting .329 with 14 home runs and 81 RBI in 112 games, and was later assigned to the Mesa Solar Sox of the Arizona Fall League. He began 2017 with the Myrtle Beach Pelicans of the High-A Carolina League. On July 13, 2017, the Cubs traded Jiménez, Dylan Cease, Matt Rose, and Bryant Flete to the Chicago White Sox for José Quintana.

The White Sox assigned him to the Winston-Salem Dash and later promoted him to the Birmingham Barons; in 89 total games across three levels he batted .312 with 19 home runs, 65 RBI, and a .947 OPS. After the 2017 season the White Sox added him to their 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft. In 2018 he was assigned to Double-A Birmingham but missed the end of spring training with a knee injury and the start of the regular season with a pectoral injury.

He was promoted to the Triple-A Charlotte Knights in June, and in 108 total games between the two teams he slashed .337/.384/.577 with 22 home runs and 75 RBI. On March 22, 2019, Jiménez signed a six-year, $43 million contract with the White Sox that included two additional option years for the team, potentially bringing the total value to $75 million; it was the richest contract ever for a player before his major league debut.