White 'not that far off' after dazzling in Spring Breakout

JUPITER, Fla. -- Spring Breakout is meant to showcase baseball¡¯s future stars, so the Marlins used their lineup to feature seven prospects who appeared in big league camp this spring.

If starting left-hander Thomas White¡¯s performance on Friday afternoon was any indication, his time will come sooner rather than later. White struck out three batters and allowed just an infield hit across two innings during a 3-3 tie with the top Cardinals prospects at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium.

¡°[White] ain't far off, that's for sure,¡± said Marlins legend Juan Pierre, who served as Miami's manager. ¡°He's still a baby, though, but his body looks like a grown man. Him and Noble [Meyer], the other guys that all came in. But White definitely has a very great upside to him and looked like he¡¯s got command of all four pitches. Just his presence on the mound, you can tell, he's not that far off, in my opinion. Don't put this on me, but in my opinion.¡±

A year ago, White started the inaugural Spring Breakout over fellow top prospect Meyer and struck out the side in his lone inning. It set the tone for a memorable first full professional season.

During his age-19 campaign, White started eight games for Single-A Jupiter (3.18 ERA) before earning a promotion to High-A Beloit and garnering Midwest League honors (2.61 ERA in 13 starts). Between, he impressed at the All-Star Futures Game.

As a result, White catapulted to MLB Pipeline¡¯s No. 41 overall prospect. He also is considered the third-best left-handed-pitching prospect.

¡°It was great,¡± White said of his 2024. ¡°It just really solidified the fact, like you said, I can go out there and have confidence in all my stuff, so going out there and letting it eat and seeing what everyone else has got. It's kind of been the name of the game since I got drafted. So I'm glad it worked for me last year. I'll keep at it.¡±

On Friday, White showed why the hype is real.

White¡¯s velocity maxed out at 98.9 mph, and he has reached triple digits on the back fields. The 6-foot-5, 240-pounder credits adding weight and using his legs to optimize his mechanics.

Then there¡¯s the improved command, as evidenced by him tossing 23 of his 35 pitches for strikes. White threw first-pitch strikes to five of seven batters. He also surprised batters with his entire five-pitch arsenal, led by his four-seamer, sweeper and cutter.

¡°He¡¯s a pretty good pitcher, and that velocity is real,¡± said MLB Pipeline¡¯s No. 23 overall prospect JJ Wetherholt, who lined out in the first. ¡°We had [a scouting report] that he just threw fastball and curveballs, but he was throwing sliders to me, so that was different. It¡¯s cool to see guys like him develop and take that next stride.¡±

The next step for White is likely to begin the 2025 season at Double-A Pensacola, where he wanted to finish 2024.

But why stop there?

¡°Going into year one, you know you're not going to make it to the bigs,¡± White said. ¡°The same thing in year two. But it's still fun to be around the guys a little bit more. Once you get to Double-A, it starts to get real. So I hope to get there when I do, but I'll pitch wherever they tell me to and just have fun and fill it up.¡±

Other tidbits
? Shortstop Starlyn Caba (Jes¨²s Luzardo trade), second baseman Andrew Salas (top international signee) and third baseman Echedry Vargas (Jake Burger trade) made their organizational debuts by entering the game as defensive replacements in the sixth.

Caba (MLB Pipeline¡¯s No. 80 prospect) finished 0-for-1 with a walk. Salas (Marlins No. 5 prospect) went hitless in two at-bats. Vargas (Marlins No. 18) struck out in his only AB.

? Meyer (No. 84 overall) allowed one run across two frames. After working around a leadoff double in the fifth, he loaded the bases with no outs in the sixth before inducing an RBI forceout and an inning-ending double play.

? Miami replaced right fielder Kemp Alderman (Marlins No. 11) in the fourth after he injured his left side while making a running catch into the wall in the third. Andres Valor (Marlins No. 19) went 2-for-3 with an RBI single in his place.