Pitched two seasons at the University of Southern Mississippi from 2021-22 before transferring to the University of Florida for his junior year in 2023...During his lone season on campus in Gainesville, Fla., went 10-3 with a 4.16 ERA (47 ER/101. 2 IP), making all 19 of his scheduled weekend starts... Recorded 156 strikeouts; second-most within single-season in program history, falling one shy of Detroit's RHP Alex Faedo's program record set in 2017...His 13.8 strikeouts per nine topped former Colorado Rockies RHP John Burke's 32-year record of 13.3 set in 1990...ln the NCAA Tournament, fanned 12-plus batters in three consecutive starts, accruing 37 punchouts against UConn, South Carolina and Oral Robert - powering the team to the College World Series finishing runner-up to LSU...Awards: 2023 DlBaseball.com Second Team All-American...2023 ABCA First Team Southeast All-Region...2023 NCAA Gainesville Regional All-Tournament Team...2023 SEC First-Year Academic Honor Roll...2023 SEC Pitcher of the Week (period ending April 17).. 2023 Collegiate Baseball First Team Preseason All American...2022 DlBaseball.com Third Team All-American...Attended Thomasville High School (Thomasville, Ga.)...Ranked as the 14th-best RHP in the state of
Georgia by Perfect Game in 2020...Collected Region 1-AA Pitcher of the Year honors and Region 1-AA First Team accolades...Won three Region 1-AA titles (2017, 2018, and 2019)...Son of Cliff and Debbie Waldrep...Has one brother, Ryan and two sisters, Morgan and Edon...Selected by Atlanta in the first round (24th overall) of the 2023 MLB First-Year Player Draft.
2023
In his first season in the Braves system, rose four levels from Single-A to High-A to Double-A to Triple-A, posting a 1.53 ERA (5 ER/29.1 IP) in eight starts...His 41 strikeouts were more than any other hurler in the 2023 MLB Draft class...He issued 16 walks, while holding opponents to a .179 batting average (19-for-106)...Made his professional debut with Single-A Augusta, August 5 vs. Columbia (3.0 IP, 1 ER, 8 K, 2 BB)...Earned his first promotion to Triple-A on Sept. 23...Became the first Braves farmhand to reach Triple-A Gwinnett (est. 2009) in the same year he was drafted...While with High-A Rome, notched his season high for innings pitched (4.2) and strikeouts (10) in the same outing, Aug. 26 vs. Greensboro...In three starts with High-A Rome, struck out 17 and allowed one earned run and four hits in 12.0 innings...Pitched to a 2.70 ERA (3 ER/10.0 IP) with 11 strikeouts over his next three starts, which came with Double-A Mississippi...Finished the season as Atlanta's No. 2 overall prospect, according to MLBPipeline.com...Also ranked No. 100 on the Top 100 Prospects List, by the same publication.
