Travelers have defensive whiz at first base in White

First baseman Evan White, the No. 4 prospect in the Seattle Mariners’ organization, showed off his well-noted defensive skills to whet the appetite of Arkansas Travelers fans Sunday afternoon during a 4-2 victory over the Amarillo Sod Poodles at Dickey-Stephens Park.

They’re going to have wait a while to see him again.

White, who ranks No. 98 on mlbpipeline.com’s list of top prospects, sat out Monday night’s game with Amarillo — which the Travelers won 9-6 — to rest a hamstring injury that cost him two weeks of playing time in mid April — and he won’t play at home again until a week from Thursday against the Tulsa Drillers.

The Travs begin a seven-game road trip Wednesday night in Frisco, Texas.

But White, the Mariners’ 17th selection in the first round of 2017 Major League Baseball Draft, showed why he has been recognized as the best-fielding first baseman in all of minor league baseball.

On Sunday, playing at Dickey-Stephens Park for the fifth time all season, he took a base hit from Amarillo’s Webster

Rivas’ when he sprawled on his stomach to grab a ball headed toward the right-field corner in the fifth inning.

“I saw it came off his bat it had a spinning kick toward the line,” he said. “I had a decent angle at it. Just create an angle to give myself the best shot possible. … I guess you can say it was a little behind me.”

One inning later, he smoothly picked Donnie Walton’s throw out of the dirt to complete a nifty play by the shortstop.

Arkansas Manager Mitch Canham, while acknowledging White’s fielding, said he is not concerned about White finding his hitting stroke, especially after two strong atbats on Sunday, a line drive to

right that advanced Travs runner Jake Fraley to third base. And there was a line drive to left field in the eighth.

“He looks great in the box,” Canham said of Evans, who is hitting .214 with 4 RBI in 11 games.” Every time hits the ball, he hits it extremely hard. There’s an element of luck to it.”

White said it’s important for him to be able to contribute with the glove, which he did Sunday, even when his hitting picks up.

Digging balls out of the dirt to prevent errors from his teammates is something he has taken pride in since he was a kid. His parents would hit and throw him grounders in the back yard and throw

balls to help him pick balls out of the dirt.

He takes no shame in being known as the best friend of his fellow infielders.

“If you don’t get it, obviously it’s going to be an error on them,” he said. “So you’ve got

their back. You’ve got to take care of your guys.”

It’s not like White can’t swing the bat.

He hit .303 with 11 home runs, 27 doubles and 66 RBI in 2018, his first full season in professional baseball, with Class A Modesto, along with winning the Rawlings Gold Glove as the top fielding first baseman in all of minor-league baseball.

The hitting will come, Canham and Evans said.

“I haven’t gotten rewarded for it too much lately, but I’m just trying to have a good at bat each time,” he said. “They’re going to fall eventually.”