Getting to Know Astros/Hooks 3B Tyler White

3B Tyler White has somehow managed to fly under the radar despite the fact that he was among the organization leaders in 2014 in walk rate, on-base percentage, slugging, OPS, WRC+ and wOBA. He missed time early in the season for a family matter, but is now making up for lost time, getting the bulk of playing time at third base for the Corpus Christi Hooks as Colin Moran recovers from a non-displaced jaw fracture.

Tyler White - May 2015

Photo by Jayne Hansen

In 13 games White is hitting .300/.500/.400 (.302/.415/.479 career-to-date) and, although he hasn't displayed much power so far this season, he collected 33 doubles, two triples and 15 home runs in 2014. He also currently has a career 106 walks to 100 strikeouts (16 walks and 9 strikeouts so far in 2015).

Hooks Hitting Coach Dan Radison had this to say about White, "He's got a hitter's mentality. He's got some natural aggressiveness, but the aggressiveness doesn't spill over into chasing bad pitches. He's done a good job at swinging at strikes and taking balls, but he's still able to attack the baseball in doing that. So if you can attack strikes and take balls, you can hit."

Hooks Manager Rodney Linares is working with a recently slimmed-down White on his agility in the field and, based on what I saw over the weekend, that work may be paying off. Linares went on to say of White, "He's a very smart hitter," citing his ability to work the counts and draw walks.

I caught up with White this past Sunday and we spoke about his experience playing winter ball in Panama, what type of player he is, the talent on that Hooks team and more.

>>>>>>><<<<<<<

You can find more on virtually every player in the Astros farm system in the 2015 Houston Farm System Handbook. Get your copy now!