Rebuilding Pittsburgh Pirates select pair of coveted college football recruits in MLB draft

The Pittsburgh Pirates selected outfielder Lonnie White Jr. and pitcher Chandler Bubba in the MLB draft, both of whom are college football recruits from the 2021 class.

White Jr. was taken in the competitive balance round B and taken No. 64 overall, out of Mavern Prep School in Malvern, Pennsylvania. White Jr. was also ranked as the No. 275 football prospect and had signed with Penn State as an athlete.

He also held football scholarship offers from Michigan, Michigan State, Tennessee, Virginia Tech and others before committing and signing with the Nittany Lions.

Chandler was a four-star quarterback who signed with Clemson after receiving a scholarship offer after a visit to the school. Chandler had been committed to Georgia to play baseball, but was swayed by Clemson coach Dabo Swinney to pick the Tigers for football.

He was going to have the opportunity, in fact, to play both football and baseball at Clemson, but ultimately the upside of a potential MLB career was too much to pass up. He told ESPN on Monday that he intends to sign with the Pirates.

According to MLB.com, White's projected pick value is at $1.05 million, while Chandler's pick value is at $870,700.