ANDOVER, MA — Major League Baseball Pipeline released its first rankings of prospects for the 2023 MLB Draft this week, and Phillips Academy senior pitcher Thomas White features prominently on the list.
White, a 6-foot-5, 210-pound lefty from Rowley, is ranked as the No. 19 overall prospect for the Draft, which is scheduled to take place during July’s All-Star break in Seattle. Rowley is rated as the 7th-best high school prospect in the current class, and MLB Pipeline, which evaluates prospects, calls him the best prep lefty.
White has committed to play college baseball at powerhouse Vanderbilt. Although he could choose to sign with an MLB team after the Draft.
On Wednesday, MLB Pipeline projected that White would get drafted 21st by the St. Louis Cardinals next summer.
If that were the case, White would be the first lefty pitcher from Massachusetts ever taken in the first round of the Draft. The last high school pitcher from Massachusetts taken in the first round was Tyler Beede, a Worcester native who split the 2022 MLB season with the San Francisco Giants and Pittsburgh Pirates.
MLB Pipeline scouts suggested that a strong spring by White for Phillips Academy could be enough to land him in the first round, where there will be 28 picks.
“White checks off a lot of boxes in terms of his size, he’s 6-foot-5, his pure stuff and his left-handedness,” MLB Pipeline wrote. “He was up to 96-97 mph with his fastball over the summer, missing bats with it up in the zone. He couples it with what could be a plus curveball, thrown with high spin rates in the upper-70s. He doesn’ t throw it as much yet, but he showed off enough low-80s changeups to give a sense that he’s going to have a very good three-pitch mix in the future.”
White certainly dazzled during his junior campaign in Andover, when he was named the 2022 Gatorade Player of the Year for Massachusetts. He finished with a 6-1 record, an 0.21 ERA, he struck out 70 batters and allowed just 10 hits in 33 innings pitched.
The performance helped lead Phillips Academy to an 18-3 record, a Central New England Prep Championship and the No. 1 ranking in the final New England Baseball Journal New England Prep Coaches Poll.
Former Phillips Academy head coach Kevin Graber, who left the school in October to take a position in the Chicago Cubs organization, said White is more than just a talented baseball player.
“At this point, I think everyone knows about Thomas’s athletic ability and potential, but I’m most proud of the person he is,” Graber told the school’s website. “He’s an amazing student and super hard worker, and he’s also the first player to high-five a teammate, pick up equipment or rake the mound when he’s finished. When your most talented player is also your hardest worker and an amazing kid, that’s special.”