Top Pennsylvania athlete commits to Clemson
On Oct. 21, Clemson baseball picked up a commitment from Malvern Prep (PA) sophomore Lonnie White Jr for the 2021 recruiting class.
White is a 6-foot-2, 195-pound outfielder on a very successful prep team. As a freshman, he had a batting average of .327, 24 RBI's and 14 stolen bases. The freshman garnered second team All-Inter-Academic league honors and helped Malvern Prep win a fourth prep state championship in five years.
According to Prep Baseball Report, White is the number two baseball prospect in Pennsylvania for his class. The sophomore has an 85 mph fastball and blazing 6.58 speed in the 60-yard dash. To put his speed in perspective, Oklahoma Sooner's quarterback Kyler Murray, the ninth overall pick in June's MLB draft, has a time of 6.60 from that distance.
Malvern Prep head coach Freddy Hilliard on his young talented right-hander. "Lonnie is just a special athlete, he might be the best pure athlete Malvern’s ever seen," he told PA PrepLive. "He is so physically blessed with great speed, strong arm, explosive swing, and incredible instincts." Hilliard also said, "The sky is the limit for him, and we look forward to seeing him continue to develop."
White is a three-sport athlete who spends his time away from baseball on the Friars basketball and football teams.
One of his teammates on the football team is Clemson 2019 football commit Keith Maguire. When asked if he knew the baseball commit, Maguire laughed, "Haha, yes. I know him real well. He is a really good football player as well."
Both are key players on a Malvern Prep team that presently is undefeated. On Friday, Malvern Prep defeated Episcopal Academy 24-7 to improve to 8-0 overall and 2-0 in the Inter-Ac League. Maguire caught a 62-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Drew Gunther and intercepted a pass in the game. White didn't score, but on the season, he has scored several times including touchdown receptions of 55 and 73 yards and a punt return of 43 yards.
In one preseason Pennsylvania 2021 player rankings, Penn Live tabbed White, a starting receiver/backup quarterback, as the eleventh best player in the state.
White is expected to be the Friars starting quarterback next season.
It will interesting to see how he develops in each sport for the next two years.
White joins in-state commits LHP Rocco Reid of Greenville High and RHP Billy Barlow of North Myrtle Beach in the 2021 baseball recruiting class.