They say it is impossible not to be romantic about baseball. Chase Whitley’s story is one that gives credence to that idea. He never reached the Hall of Fame and he never etched his name among the game’s legends, but he did discover one of baseball’s greatest gifts: the opportunity to pay it forward.
Chase Coleman Whitley
Born: June 14, 1989 (Ranburne, AL)
Yankees Tenure: 2014-2015
Whitley was born and raised in Ranburne, Alabama where he graduated from Ranburne High School in 2007. A three sport star
in baseball, football, and basketball, Whitley would elect to attend Southern Union State Community College to play baseball as both a pitcher and infielder for the Bisons. Southern Union State Community College competes in the NJCAA at the Division II level.
While in junior college Whitley impressed as both a pitcher and hitter. As a hitter, Whitley posted a .427 average as a freshman and .412 as a sophomore on his way to being named first team All-Conference. His performance was good enough to land an opportunity to go to Troy University for his junior season.
The Troy Trojans are a Division I university in Alabama. Whitley joined the program as it was coming off new found success and was looking to continue building into a national power. Coincidentally, Troy has finally made it to the College World Series this season for the first time this year after years of building their program. As a Trojan, Whitley continued to serve as a two-way player pitching and playing third base. In his lone season, he hit .364 with 10 home runs. On the mound, Whitley served as the closer for the Trojans. In 32 appearances Whitley put up a 3.68 ERA in 66 innings and secured seven saves.
This season was impressive enough for the Yankees to use their pick in the 15th round of the 2010 draft on Whitley. Despite showing some potential to be able to play both ways the Yankees wanted Whitley to focus on pitching. For the first time in his life, Whitley would focus on one aspect of one sport.
The Yankees staff began working with Whitley and he quickly rose through the system appearing mostly as a reliever. In the offseasons, Whitley returned home and started to work with local youths by coaching and training them. By the end of the 2012 season Whitley found himself pitching for the Yankees Triple-A affiliate in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. On the doorstep of the big leagues Whitley would continue to get seasoned and refine his craft there until 2014.
Entering the 2014 season the Yankees decided to start stretching Whitley out hoping to use him as a starting pitcher in the minors. Whitley was thriving in the new role and in May of 2014 the Yankees found themselves victim to injuries in the starting rotation after ace CC Sabathia joined fellow pitchers Ivan Nova and Michael Pineda on the shelf. At 24 years old, and despite only making a handful of starts in the minors, the Yankees called Whitley up to fill a hole in the big league rotation.
On May 15, 2014, Whitley made his Major League debut against the Mets. Standing opposite him was another rookie making his own debut that night: Jacob deGrom. While deGrom would go on to become one of the greatest pitchers of his generation, Whitley got the better of the meeting, tossing 4.2 scoreless innings and collecting a hit off the future Cy Young winner in a 1-0 Yankees victory.
Whitley would appear in 24 games total in 2014 making 12 starts. His final line for his rookie season was 4-3 with a 5.23 ERA. The Yankees would end the season without making the postseason for the second straight year. With a taste of the majors in his mouth, Whitley looked to 2015 with hope of further carving out a role on the team.
The Yankees pitching staff started 2015 off healthy so Whitley found himself back in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to start the year. However, in late April Whitley got the call back up as the big league club again found itself facing injuries in the rotation. Whitley made four starts, posting a 1-2 record with a 4.19 ERA over 19.1 innings before the injury bug unfortunately got Whitley too.
In mid-May Whitley was pulled from a start against the Rays with arm discomfort and a few days later would be under the knife for Tommy John surgery. This injury would ultimately end Whitley’s time in the Bronx as well. In November, while rehabbing, Whitley was claimed off waivers by the Tampa Bay Rays.
Most of Whitley’s first season with the Rays was spent rehabbing, but he did get called up in September and made a handful of appearances for the club. Healthy for the 2017 season Whitley would start the year in Triple-A before sticking with the big league club as their long-reliever. That offseason Whitley was claimed by the Atlanta Braves, his favorite childhood team. However, the storybook ending would not come to fruition as a severe staph infection in his heel would ruin his season and effectively end his career. Whitley only made one appearance for the Braves.
Following the 2018 season with the Braves, Whitley decided to retire. His final career numbers include a 7-6 record, 4.56 ERA, with 75 appearances including 17 starts. Despite his playing days being over, the game was not finished with Whitley.
Whitley returned home to Alabama where he now serves as the head coach at Ranburne High School. A local legend who once left town chasing a professional dream, Whitley now spends his days helping the next generation of players build their own foundation in the sport. He may not have finished his career the way he envisioned, but few endings are more fitting than returning home and passing the game on to those who love it as much as he once did and still does.
Happy birthday Chase!
