Chase Whitley

Chase Coleman Whitley

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 215 lb.
• School Troy University, Southern Union Community College
• High School Ranburne High School
• Debut May 15, 2014
• Final Game April 27, 2018
• Born June 14, 1989 in Ranburne, AL USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Chase Whitley made the majors in 2014.

He hit .484 as a high school junior and .427 as a senior. He was also a two-time regional MVP in basketball. He batted .427 as a freshman in junior college and .412 as a sophomore. Transferring to Troy, he was a solid two-way threat as a junior in 2010, hitting .364/.464/.564 with 10 homers, 60 runs and 56 RBI in 59 games while going 7-3 with 7 saves and a 3.68 ERA. He was 9th in the Sun Belt Conference in runs, tied for 8th in hits (86), tied for 9th in wins, was 7th in saves and was third with 32 games pitched. The New York Yankees picked him in the 15th round of the 2010 amateur draft. He was signed by scout D.J. Svihlik for $68,000 and made his pro debut that summer.

Whitley split the summer of 2010 between the Staten Island Yankees (4-2, 15 Sv, 1.31, 44 K, .96 WHIP in 34 1/3 IP) and Tampa Yankees (1 R in 3 IP). He tossed 3 1/3 shutout playoff innings for Tampa, fanning five. He tied another Chase, Chase Johnson, for second in the New York-Penn League in saves (one behind Jordan Conley), was second in games pitched (28, two behind Conley) and was third in opponent average (.157).

In 2011, Whitley pitched for Tampa (0-1, 6 Sv, 1.68 in 23 G) and the Trenton Thunder (3-4, Sv, 3.38 in 19 G). He tied Eric Wordekemper for 6th in the Yankees chain in games pitched. The next season, he did well with Trenton (Sv, 0 R in 4 IP) and the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees (9-5, Sv, 3.25 in 41 G). He tied for 6th in the Yankee chain in wins and was 8th in pitching appearances. He was 3-2 with three saves and a 3.06 ERA in 29 games for the 2013 Scranton/Wilkes-Barre team. He opened 2014 with the same club, going 3-2 with a 2.39 ERA and 32 K in 26 1/3 IP. He was called up when CC Sabathia went on the DL.

In his major league debut for the New York Yankees on May 15, 2014, Whitley faced another pitcher making his debut, Jacob deGrom of the New York Mets. Both pitchers did very well, with Chase giving up no runs on 2 hits in 4 2/3 innings before Dellin Betances relieved, while deGrom gave up a single run in 7 frames. The two pitchers both also collected their first major league hit off one another. The Yankees won the game, 1-0, with Whitley ending up with a no-decision. He recorded his first career win on June 6th against the Kansas City Royals, 4-2. he ended the season with a record of 4-3, 5.23 in 24 games, including 12 starts. He pitched 75 2/3 innings, giving up 90 hits including 10 homers, but putting up a good K/W ratio at 60/18. Whitley started the 2015 season in the minors, with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, and went 2-0, 2.12 in 3 starts. He was called up to New York in late April to join the starting rotation. He went 1-2, 4.19 in 4 starts, but had to leave the last of these, on May 14th, in the 2nd inning with pain in his elbow. He underwent an MRI the next day which revealed a tear in his ulnar collateral ligament and elected to undergo Tommy John surgery, putting him out for at least a year. He was claimed off waivers by the Tampa Bay Rays following that season.

Sources

• 2014 Yankees Media Guide
• Troy bio
• The Baseball Cube

Related Sites

• Chase Whitley on mlb.com
• BR Minors page