Lonnie White

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Pittsburgh Pirates #17 prospect in 2024
  BA Grade: 50/Extreme
  
  Track Record: White was a highly valued prospect in the 2021 draft based on an athletic skill set that earned him a scholarship offer to play baseball and football at Penn State. Instead, the Pirates chose him with the No. 64 pick and gave him a $1.5 million bonus. Three seasons later, injuries have kept him off the field and his talent under wraps. Sixty-one of his 71 career games came in 2023.
  
  Scouting Report: Though the early portion of his career has been extremely limited, White’s tools still are intact and intriguing. Scouts see a player with three above-average or plus tools, including speed that grades out as a 60. His hit tool lags behind, but the Pirates are working with White to get it closer to average. Specifically, they’re working to get his body a bit more loose and improve his bat angle to create a better path through the zone that adds a little more loft. White was rusty as expected, and he whiffed in-zone at rates that don’t indicate a pure hitter. He didn’t chase much, however, and his exit velocities were solid. White is a pure center fielder with above-average defense and an average arm.
  
  The Future: Simply staying on the field for an extended period was a boon for White’s career. He should spend his 2024 season at the Class A levels, and he is one of the system’s prime breakout candidates if he can stay healthy. He has a ceiling as a well-rounded center fielder.
  
  Scouting Grades Hit: 40 | Power: 55 | Run: 60 | Field: 55 | Arm: 50
• 
  Ranked Pittsburgh Pirates #29 prospect in 2023
  BA Grade/Risk: 50/Extreme
  
  Track Record: White is a dynamic athlete who planned to play both baseball and football at Penn State until the Pirates drafted him No. 64 overall in 2021 and went $500,000 over slot to sign him to a $1.5 million bonus. His professional career has yet to come into focus. White has played just 11 games at the rookie-level Florida Complex League since turning pro, missing essentially all of the 2022 season because of elbow and hamstring injuries.
  
  Scouting Report: The injury woes hit particularly hard for White, who was already in need of consistent reps to catch up as a cold-weather prep bat who never focused on baseball full-time. While it's tough to draw anything conclusive from 40 career plate appearances, he still appears to be the same strong, explosive athlete with plus raw power potential who battles swing-and-miss issues (42% strikeout rate). White is already physically mature. He's a plus runner now who could slow down a tick as he gets older, which could force him to a corner outfield spot.
  
  The Future: The Pirates expect White will be healthy for spring training and he'll be just 20 years old on Opening Day. There's a bundle of intriguing traits to work with, but he needs to remain healthy and make up for lost time.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 40. Power: 60. Speed: 55. Fielding: 55. Arm: 50.
• 
  Ranked Pittsburgh Pirates #14 prospect in 2022
  Track Record: White ranked as the No. 32 prospect in the 2021 draft, but a two-sport commitment to Penn State to play both baseball and football created signability questions. Pittsburgh went nearly $500,000 over slot to sign White, taking him No. 64 overall. He debuted in the Florida Complex League, hitting .258 with a pair of homers in nine games.
  
  Scouting Report: White was a four-star wide receiver recruit and his explosiveness shows up frequently on the diamond. He’s a powerful athlete with ample strength and bat speed. His plus raw power from the right side already puts him among some of the most powerful bats in Pittsburgh’s system, and he showed a track record of in-game, impactful hitting ability as an amateur. There are swing-and-miss concerns—he struck out 42% of the time in his nine-game FCL debut—but the Pirates noted he already showed impressive adjustability in approach and think he’ll improve in that area now that he’s focusing on baseball for the first time. White is a plus runner who covers a ton of ground in center field and also shows impressive instincts.
  
  The Future: White’s blend of power, speed and performance create high upside. The Pirates are eager to see how he progresses with a full year to focus solely on baseball.
  

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #32 prospect in 2021 draft
  White originally committed to Clemson for baseball, but he switched his commitment in May 2020 to Penn State to play both baseball and wide receiver for the football team. A three-sport athlete who also played high school basketball, White is a physical, explosive player with a well-rounded tool set. He also has a good track record of game performance going back to last summer, including an MVP award from the Perfect Game 17U National Championship in July, a long home run off a 94 mph fastball at the Area Code Games and another productive tournament at the World Wood Bat Championship in October. He has continued to hit well for the most part this spring, albeit with some swing and miss to his game, but he has shown feel for hitting, especially given his multi-sport background. White is physically mature for his age, but he has the strength, bat speed and swing conducive to tapping into what should consistently be plus raw power. White is built like a corner outfielder, but he's a plus runner now with good instincts in center field. Those skills give him a chance to start out in center field, though with his body type, he probably will slow down. If he slides over to right field, he has the tools to be an above-average defender there, including an arm that's improved to a tick above-average. White's two-sport commitment might make him a more difficult sign, but his skill set could also make him one of the top high school outfielders off the board.

• February, 2023 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 50/Extreme
  
  Track Record: White is a dynamic athlete who planned to play both baseball and football at Penn State until the Pirates drafted him No. 64 overall in 2021 and went $500,000 over slot to sign him to a $1.5 million bonus. His professional career has yet to come into focus. White has played just 11 games at the rookie-level Florida Complex League since turning pro, missing essentially all of the 2022 season because of elbow and hamstring injuries.
  
  Scouting Report: The injury woes hit particularly hard for White, who was already in need of consistent reps to catch up as a cold-weather prep bat who never focused on baseball full-time. While it's tough to draw anything conclusive from 40 career plate appearances, he still appears to be the same strong, explosive athlete with plus raw power potential who battles swing-and-miss issues (42% strikeout rate). White is already physically mature. He's a plus runner now who could slow down a tick as he gets older, which could force him to a corner outfield spot.
  
  The Future: The Pirates expect White will be healthy for spring training and he'll be just 20 years old on Opening Day. There's a bundle of intriguing traits to work with, but he needs to remain healthy and make up for lost time.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 40. Power: 60. Speed: 55. Fielding: 55. Arm: 50.
• December, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 50/Extreme
  
  Track Record: White is a dynamic athlete who planned to play both baseball and football at Penn State until the Pirates drafted him No. 64 overall in 2021 and went $500,000 over slot to sign him to a $1.5 million bonus. His professional career has yet to come into focus. White has played just 11 games at the rookie-level Florida Complex League since turning pro, missing essentially all of the 2022 season because of elbow and hamstring injuries.
  
  Scouting Report: The injury woes hit particularly hard for White, who was already in need of consistent reps to catch up as a cold-weather prep bat who never focused on baseball full-time. While it's tough to draw anything conclusive from 40 career plate appearances, he still appears to be the same strong, explosive athlete with plus raw power potential who battles swing-and-miss issues (42% strikeout rate). White is already physically mature. He's a plus runner now who could slow down a tick as he gets older, which could force him to a corner outfield spot.
  
  The Future: The Pirates expect White will be healthy for spring training and he'll be just 20 years old on Opening Day. There's a bundle of intriguing traits to work with, but he needs to remain healthy and make up for lost time.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 40. Power: 60. Speed: 55. Fielding: 55. Arm: 50.
• April, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade: 55/Extreme
  
  Track Record: White ranked as the No. 32 prospect in the 2021 draft, but a two-sport commitment to Penn State to play both baseball and football created signability questions. Pittsburgh went nearly $500,000 over slot to sign White, taking him No. 64 overall. He debuted in the Florida Complex League, hitting .258 with a pair of homers in nine games.
  
  Scouting Report: White was a four-star wide receiver recruit and his explosiveness shows up frequently on the diamond. He&#39s a powerful athlete with ample strength and bat speed. His plus raw power from the right side already puts him among some of the most powerful bats in Pittsburgh&#39s system, and he showed a track record of in-game, impactful hitting ability as an amateur. There are swing-and-miss concerns—he struck out 42% of the time in his nine-game FCL debut—but the Pirates noted he already showed impressive adjustability in approach and think he&#39ll improve in that area now that he&#39s focusing on baseball for the first time. White is a plus runner who covers a ton of ground in center field and also shows impressive instincts.
  
  The Future: White&#39s blend of power, speed and performance create high upside. The Pirates are eager to see how he progresses with a full year to focus solely on baseball.
• December, 2021 Scouting Report
  Track Record: White ranked as the No. 32 prospect in the 2021 draft, but a two-sport commitment to Penn State to play both baseball and football created signability questions. Pittsburgh went nearly $500,000 over slot to sign White, taking him No. 64 overall. He debuted in the Florida Complex League, hitting .258 with a pair of homers in nine games.
  
  Scouting Report: White was a four-star wide receiver recruit and his explosiveness shows up frequently on the diamond. He’s a powerful athlete with ample strength and bat speed. His plus raw power from the right side already puts him among some of the most powerful bats in Pittsburgh’s system, and he showed a track record of in-game, impactful hitting ability as an amateur. There are swing-and-miss concerns—he struck out 42% of the time in his nine-game FCL debut—but the Pirates noted he already showed impressive adjustability in approach and think he’ll improve in that area now that he’s focusing on baseball for the first time. White is a plus runner who covers a ton of ground in center field and also shows impressive instincts.
  
  The Future: White’s blend of power, speed and performance create high upside. The Pirates are eager to see how he progresses with a full year to focus solely on baseball.
  
• July, 2021 Scouting Report
  White originally committed to Clemson for baseball, but he switched his commitment in May 2020 to Penn State to play both baseball and wide receiver for the football team. A three-sport athlete who also played high school basketball, White is a physical, explosive player with a well-rounded tool set. He also has a good track record of game performance going back to last summer, including an MVP award from the Perfect Game 17U National Championship in July, a long home run off a 94 mph fastball at the Area Code Games and another productive tournament at the World Wood Bat Championship in October. He has continued to hit well for the most part this spring, albeit with some swing and miss to his game, but he has shown feel for hitting, especially given his multi-sport background. White is physically mature for his age, but he has the strength, bat speed and swing conducive to tapping into what should consistently be plus raw power. White is built like a corner outfielder, but he's a plus runner now with good instincts in center field. Those skills give him a chance to start out in center field, though with his body type, he probably will slow down. If he slides over to right field, he has the tools to be an above-average defender there, including an arm that's improved to a tick above-average.