Owen White (baseball)

William Timothy Owen White (born August 9, 1999) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2023.

Owen White
Texas Rangers – No. 43
Pitcher
Born: (1999-08-09) August 9, 1999
Mount Ulla, North Carolina, U.S.
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
MLB debut
June 13, 2023, for the Texas Rangers
MLB statistics
(through 2023 season)
Win–loss record0–1
Earned run average11.25
Strikeouts4
Teams

Amateur career

White attended Jesse C. Carson High School in China Grove, North Carolina.[1] White was a three–sport athlete in high school, playing basketball through his senior year and quarterback on the football team through his junior season.[2] White finished his senior season after posting a 10–1 record, 0.22 ERA, with 101 strikeouts in 63+2⁄3 innings.[3] He was named the North Carolina Gatorade baseball Player of the Year for 2017–2018.[4] White committed to the University of South Carolina to play college baseball for the South Carolina Gamecocks.[5]

The Texas Rangers selected White in the 2nd round, with the 55th overall selection, of the 2018 Major League Baseball draft.[6] He signed with Texas for a $1.5 million signing bonus.[7]

Professional career

After signing, White did not appear in an official game with a Rangers' affiliate in the 2018 season. Instead, he took part in a new program put in place by Texas for their newly drafted high school pitchers. The "de-load" program as the organization called it, emphasized building a foundation mentally and physically while resting the pitchers' bodies from a strenuous senior season and pre-draft showcase circuit. The players were put through a strength program and classroom work until the post-season fall instructional training started.[8] White suffered a torn UCL and underwent Tommy John surgery in May 2019, causing him to miss the entire season.[9][10] White did not play in 2020 due to the cancellation of the Minor League Baseball season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[11]

White spent the 2021 season with the Down East Wood Ducks of the Low-A East. In his first professional game, White struck the ground with his right hand after making a fielding error and fractured his hand.[12][13] After making a rehab appearance with the ACL Rangers of the Rookie-level Arizona Complex League, he returned in August and finished the season posting a combined 4–1 record with a 3.06 ERA and 56 strikeouts over 35+1⁄3 innings.[14][15][16] Following the 2021 season, White played for the Surprise Saguaros of the Arizona Fall League.[17][18][19] White was named to the Fall League All-Star team.[20] White was named the AFL Pitcher of Year, after posting a 5–0 record with a 1.91 ERA and 29 strikeouts over 28+1⁄3 innings.[21][22]

White opened the 2022 season with the Hickory Crawdads of the High-A South Atlantic League.[23] After going 6–2 with a 3.99 ERA and 81 strikeouts over 58+2⁄3 innings for Hickory, White was promoted to the Frisco RoughRiders of the Double-A Texas League in June.[24] With Frisco he posted a 3–0 record with a 2.49 ERA and 23 strikeouts over 21+2⁄3 innings. White missed over two months with a right forearm strain, but returned in time to pitch in the Texas League playoffs.[25][26][27] White was ranked as the 59th overall prospect in baseball by Baseball America, the 66th overall prospect by MLB Pipeline, and the 70th overall prospect by The Athletic's Keith Law during the 2023 off-season.[28][29][30] On November 15, 2022, the Rangers selected White to their 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.[31]

White suffered neck inflammation in spring training and was optioned back to Frisco to begin the 2023 season.[32] In 11 starts for Frisco, he registered a 2–3 record and 3.54 ERA with 45 strikeouts in 53+1⁄3 innings pitched. On June 13, 2023, White was promoted to the major leagues for the first time.[33] He made his major league debut that night versus the Los Angeles Angels in relief, allowing three runs over two innings and suffering the loss.[34] He was optioned back to Frisco following his debut. After a final appearance for Frisco, he was promoted to the Round Rock Express of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League on June 20.[35] White was selected to represent Texas in the 2023 All-Star Futures Game.[36]

References
  1. "Rangers Select RHPs Cole Winn and Owen White on First Day of 2018 MLB Draft". MLB.com. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  2. "Books or big bucks? For state's top baseball prospect, why it's college vs. MLB money". Charlotte Observer. March 9, 2018. Retrieved January 14, 2019.
  3. Whittle, John (May 29, 2018). "Gamecocks signee earns Gatorade Player of the Year honors". 247Sports.com. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  4. London, Mike (May 30, 2018). "Prep Baseball: White named state player of the year". Salisbury Post. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  5. Whittle, John (June 4, 2018). "Gamecocks pledge drafted in second round of MLB Draft". 247Sports.com. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  6. "Rangers sign top 5 draft picks, including 3 prep pitchers". ESPN.com. June 12, 2018. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  7. "Rangers sign top 5 draft picks, including 3 prep pitchers". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  8. Jamey Newberg (October 17, 2018). "The logic behind Rangers' unorthodox, innovative "de-load" program, and how their young pitchers feel about it". The Athletic. Retrieved January 14, 2019.
  9. Grant, Evan (May 1, 2019). "Rangers second-round draft pick Owen White undergoes Tommy John surgery". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  10. "Rangers second-round draft pick Owen White undergoes Tommy John surgery". TMI Sports Medicine. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  11. London, Mike (October 25, 2020). "Baseball: Owen White back on the mound". Salisbury Post. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  12. Jamey Newberg (August 23, 2021). "Texas Rangers 2021 midseason prospect rankings: Nos. 42 through 13". The Athletic. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  13. London, Mike (May 6, 2021). "Pro baseball: White makes pro debut and says, 'It felt amazing to be out there'". Salisbury Post. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  14. Cooper, J. J. "Baseball America Prospect Report—September 20, 2021". Baseball America. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  15. Staff, MiLB.com (September 26, 2021). "2021 Low-A playoffs coverage". MiLB.com. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  16. Stephanie Sheehan, Nick Trujillo, and Michael Avallone (September 19, 2021). "Sunday's top prospect performers". MLB.com. Retrieved October 7, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  17. Norris, Josh. "Five Prospects Who Could Pop In The Arizona Fall League". Baseball America. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
  18. Dykstra, Sam (October 14, 2021). "White makes most of first AFL start". MLB.com. Retrieved October 15, 2021.
  19. "White nabs AFL Pitcher of the Week honors". MLB.com. October 20, 2021. Retrieved October 21, 2021.
  20. Newberg, Jamey (November 17, 2021). "What Does the AFL Mean for the Rangers? Two Skyrocketing Prospects". D Magazine. Retrieved November 20, 2021.
  21. Boor, William (November 20, 2021). "Rangers' White is AFL Pitcher of Year". MLB.com. Retrieved November 21, 2021.
  22. Newberg, Jamey (November 24, 2021). "Owen White is Done Biding His Time". D Magazine. Retrieved November 24, 2021.
  23. Laurila, David (June 6, 2022). "Texas Rangers Prospect Owen White Trusts His Stuff (and For Good Reason)". FanGraphs. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  24. "Rangers announce Minor League award winners for June". MLB.com. July 14, 2022. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  25. Postins, Matthew (November 2, 2022). "Rangers Top 30 Prospect Wraps: Owen White". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved November 20, 2022.
  26. Avallone, Michael (September 27, 2022). "Rangers' Double-A affiliate rallies to win Texas League title". MLB.com. Retrieved November 20, 2022.
  27. Mayo, Jonathan; Dykstra, Sam; Callis, Jim (December 29, 2022). "Prospect debuts we're excited to see in 2023". MLB.com. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
  28. "2023 Top 100 Prospects". Baseball America. Retrieved February 1, 2023.
  29. "Top 100 Baseball Prospects". MLB.com. Retrieved February 1, 2023.
  30. Law, Keith (January 30, 2023). "Keith Law's top 100 MLB prospects, with Diamondbacks' Corbin Carroll at No. 1". The Athletic. Retrieved February 1, 2023.
  31. Weaver, Levi (November 15, 2022). "Martín Pérez returns to Texas, Dennis Santana traded, 6 added to 40-man roster". The Athletic. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
  32. "Rangers' Owen White: Injury similar to last year". cbssports.com. Retrieved March 12, 2023.
  33. Landry, Kennedi. "Rangers call up top pitching prospect Owen White". MLB.com. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  34. Report, News Service (June 14, 2023). "Owen White makes MLB debut". Salisbury Post. Retrieved June 14, 2023.
  35. Grant, Evan (June 20, 2023). "Rangers promote top prospects Owen White, Dustin Harris to Triple-A Round Rock". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
  36. Postins, Matthew (June 27, 2023). "Rangers Prospect Selected for Futures Game". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved June 28, 2023.
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