White makes a great seventh impression
Reigning MVP for MLB’s reigning champs: Jose Altuve, of course.
Best player thus far on the 2018 Astros: Alex Bregman.
The club’s hottest hitter since the All-Star break: Not the name you would normally expect.
“The guy can flat-out hit,” said George Springer, referring to a guy who was a 33rd-round pick in the 2013 draft yet keeps forcing his way into A.J. Hinch’s daily lineup two years after the best baseball week of his life.
All those cartoon images and real-life videos of sharks — silly, funny, ferocious — that have been popping up on social media during recent Astros games? Tyler White has been the sudden inspiration.
Despite a 4-3 loss to the A’s at Minute Maid Park on Tuesday night that snapped the Astros’ six-game winning streak, their 27-year-old from
Mooresboro, N.C., is swinging one of the sharpest bats in the sport.
“Don’t press. Don’t do too much. Just continue to go out and play the game and enjoy playing the game,” said White, describing a simplified professional outlook that has resulted in a .304 average, nine home runs, 24 RBIs and a scorching 1.002 OPS in just 115 at-bats.
Impressive company
Entering Tuesday’s game, White’s on-base plus slugging percentage of 1.104 since the All-Star break ranked fourth in the American League, with the 5-11, 225-pound first baseman/ designated hitter trailing only the Angels’ Mike Trout, the Athletics’ Matt Chapman and the Red Sox’s J.D. Martinez. White is also swinging the Astros’ strongest stick since the Midsummer Classic, hitting .337 with seven homers, four doubles and 21 RBIs in his last 23 contests.
During an 11-4 series-opening beatdown of the A’s on Monday, White went 2-for-4 with a home run, a walk and four RBIs, then was back in Hinch’s lineup (hitting sixth, playing first) Tuesday.
Overall, a team still getting back to full health has been inconsistent (17-16) since the break. White has been one of Hinch’s most dependable names and is more confident than ever between the major league lines.
“I couldn’t be happier for that guy. He’s grinded his way,” said catcher Max Stassi, who finally caught on with the Astros this season after bouncing up and down since White was drafted. “He got here, he went back, he went back and forth. … What you’re seeing now is a testament to his mindset of grinding through the good times and bad times.”
The good: making the 2016 Astros out of spring training, then becoming the first rookie position player in American League history to be named Player of the Week during the first week of the season.
“The moment's not too big for him. Who knows what he can do? Maybe he can get better,” Hinch said in April 2016 during a dream-like week when White went 10-for-18 with three homers, two doubles and nine RBIs.
Baseball reality returned. A trend began and continued.
White was called up to the majors seven times from April 1, 2016, to July 29, 2018. He was also demoted six times, literally living on the unpredictable baseball elevator that connects Class AAA Fresno with MLB’s reigning world champs.
“When he got sent down the last time, he sat in my office pretty dejected,” Hinch said Tuesday. “He was very upset and kept asking me and (general manager) Jeff (Luhnow) like, ‘What do I have to do?’ Because he had performed fine. … We told him he’s got to keep hitting and, when he got another opportunity, to hit even more. And he’s done that. It’s been remarkable — the quality of at-bats, the production — and ultimately, he’s dictating playing time by how he’s playing, and he’s creating his own opportunity.”
After his brilliant rookie start, White ended up hitting just .217 for the disappointing 2016 Astros and posted a .286 OBP. But a brief 22-game run last season hinted at the sweet swing that still remained. White, a career .305 hitter in 519 minor league games, batted .279 with 10 runs batted in and an .853 OPS in 61 at-bats.
Host of assets
Hinch ran through White’s assets at the plate. Strike-zone discipline; barrel that finds the ball and smoothly spreads it across the park; line-drive hitter who hits home runs; pitch recognition; comfortable in the box.
“He’s sort of a naturally born hitter,” the Astros’ manager said. “We see that, we talk about that with Altuve; we talk about that with Bregman and Marwin (Gonzalez) and some of the guys that hit well. But Whitey’s done this from the day that he signed his first pro contract. This has kind of been who he’s been.”
The first run Tuesday belonged to the AL West leader. White lined Edwin Jackson’s first offering just foul down the thirdbase line, changed out a cracked bat, then chopped a bouncer to Chapman at third base. Carlos Correa crossed home, making it 1-0 Astros. After Oakland took a 3-1 lead, White led off the fifth with a single and scored on Alex Bregman’s two-run double.
“I’m here to hit,” said White, discussing his physique while capturing his importance to MLB’s third-best club.
That is all he’s done since he became an Astro again.