May 8, 2024

By Tyson Shushkewich

Canadian Baseball Network

The Ontario Blue Jays program has a historic past within Mississauga, Ont., producing more than 590 players who have taken their talents to the collegiate level while boasting over 120 players that have either been drafted or signed by a big league club.

That list includes Peter Orr (Newmarket, Ont.), Jordan Romano (Markham, Ont.), Zach Pop (Brampton, Ont.), and the Naylor brothers -- Josh, Bo and Myles -- (Mississauga, Ont.) amongst others.

With such a talented pedigree and a host of talented players, if you zoom into Morgantown, W.V., you will see Blue Jays alum Sam White forging his own path in the Division 1 ranks. He is the first player from the Ontario Blue Jays program to take his talents to the West Virginia University Mountaineers.

“I remember the first day I entered the Blue Jays Athlete Matrix facility and I was completely blown away by everything they had to offer,” White told the Canadian Baseball Network. “They have all these different technological programs to pinpoint certain parts of your game and mechanics as well as batting cages, pitching tunnels and weight rooms to enhance your development.

“These amenities combined with a top-notch coaching staff helped my development to where I am today.”

White (Aurora, Ont.) joined the Blue Jays in 2020 and had a major impact on their senior squads over the next couple of seasons. Suiting up behind the plate with some spot starts at first and third base, White also found himself joining the Junior National Team for numerous tournaments and showcases, including the Friendship Series (2021), the U18 World Cup (2022), and the Dominican Academy Tour (2022).

At the U18 World Cup in Florida, White went 7-for-21 (.333) with one double and five RBIs, compared to two walks and three strikeouts, authoring a .381 slugging mark and a .756 OPS through eight games.

“I found that one of the major benefits of playing for the OBJ was being able to participate in important tournaments across the country and in the United States which got me in front of the eyes of scouts and important people to help me get noticed,” said White.

In the winter of 2021, White officially committed to joining West Virginia of the Big 12 Conference. It was a perfect match for the athletic infielder, who fully turned his attention to playing ball after deciding his future was the diamond instead of Canada’s national pastime on the ice.

A goalie, White suited up for the York Simcoe Express AAA program from U15 through U18 and was drafted into the OHL by the Kingston Frontenacs in the 2021 Ontario Hockey League priority selection draft.

“I found the pathway to be quite narrow when I looked at my future on the ice,” said White. “If I played in the OHL, I would be ineligible for the NCAA. There was a point in time when I considered playing both sports and ultimately, when I considered playing just baseball alone, I thought my best route at a high level would be NCAA Division I.

“I am really happy with the choice I made. WVU was interested right from the get-go and always made me feel welcome and made it known that they wanted me to play there.”

Roughly five-and-a-half hours from the Canada/USA border, White joined the Mountaineers for the 2023 season and made an immediate impact as a freshman. Through 50 games, the left-handed hitter posted a .246/.354/.399 slash line with seven doubles, one triple, four home runs and a .752 OPS.

On the field, head coach Randy Mazey used White all over the diamond, including starts at third base, first base, left field, and right in a utility role. He posted a collective .959 fielding percentage.

“I love being on the field and I have always loved playing various sports growing up, whether it was baseball, hockey, volleyball, and everything in between,” said White. “Being able to play these sports growing up and always being active has helped me become a versatile player on the field and given me the ability to be put anywhere the team needs me to play. I have really embraced the idea of being a utility player for this team and it feels good to know that the coaching staff can stick me in spots all over the field, have confidence in me to produce defensively and continue putting me into those spots, regardless of the situation in the game.”

This season, White returned to a prominent role on the Mountaineers’ everyday squad, as the 19-year-old has made 45 starts across the 46 games and has not missed a game, pinch-hitting in the one game he did not start. Through 166 at-bats, White owns a .319/.415/.524 slash line with eight doubles, one triple, and has doubled his home run total (eight) from last season with eight games remaining before the Big 12 Tournament slated for May 21 to 25.

White has 16 multi-hit games and also has two multi-home run games on his scorecard entering the final weeks of the season. He has produced 22 walks compared to 39 strikeouts so far and owns a .940 OPS, ranking fourth on the squad behind talented teammates, including JJ Wetherholt, a projected first-rounder later this summer. White also ranks in the top five in almost every offensive category, including average (second on the team behind only Wetherholt), OBP, SLG, home runs, doubles, and hits, where he leads the team with 53 so far this season.

“I remember stepping on the diamond here in Morgantown and thinking to myself, this is where I want to be,” said White. “It really put into perspective the amount of work I put in, on and off the field, and the level I was at where I am facing some of the most talented college players across the conference in the Big 12, teams that have top-level draft picks or went to Super Regionals.”

His approach in the batter’s box?

White points out his mentality every time he steps up to the plate, saying:

“I go in trusting my preparation, working against the different hitting machines and in practice to prepare myself for every scenario and every type of pitcher I could face in a game scenario. I always want to be in control and be able to dictate the at-bat. Look for that fastball and be prepared for off speed pitches, being able to adjust based on the scenario and trust my abilities.”

Within the Big 12, the Mountaineers sit fourth with a 15-9 conference record and 28-18 while competing with other programs such as Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas, Kansas, and TCU among others that have experienced success at the Regionals or Super Regionals (and beyond).

For White, the goal is simple for this season – continue to produce on the field to help put the team in a position to go deep in the Regionals circuit later this month and into June.

“Everybody has individual goals, in regards to stats like average and doubles and home runs, but I want to help our team in any way I can. Super Regionals or bust, and I think this team has the personality and ability due to that and so much more. This is a great group of guys and we all feel the same way and have the same goal in mind. It is going to be a fun end to the season.”