‘It was just a really exciting moment.’ Mariners’ Evan White breaks down clutch 3-run blast against Astros
Evan White had faced Lance McCullers Jr. seven times in his young career before his at-bat in the seventh inning Monday night at T-Mobile Park.
The results to that point hadn’t been in favor of the Mariners’ rookie first baseman: Walk, hit by pitch and five glaring strikeouts.
It appeared McCullers, who carried a no-hitter into the sixth inning that night, breeze by White again in his third plate appearance. McCullers had, after all, already struck White out twice in the game.
White was disciplined in his approach when he stepped in the batter’s box, working a 2-0 count with two outs, moments after the Mariners scratched across the game’s first run for a 1-0 lead. But, he whiffed on a knuckle curve well out of the strike zone, then fouled off a fastball, and was suddenly down to his last strike.
McCullers went back to the knuckle curve, but hung it over the plate this time, and White didn’t miss his chance. He smashed the pitch. The ball landed well over the fence in left field, ricocheting off the balcony of Edgar’s Cantina. It was the crushing blow against the Astros in an eventual 6-1 win that kept Seattle’s playoff hopes within reach for another day.
The significance of the moment didn’t escape White. He tossed his bat aside in the grass before trotting around the bases. He let out an emotional scream when he high-fived and chest-bumped his good friend, Kyle Lewis, at the end of the dugout.
“It was just a really exciting moment for me,” White said during a postgame video call. “For the whole team, really. We’re in a tough spot where we’ve got to win ballgames right now, and that’s exactly what we did tonight, so kind of the emotions of that.
“Facing McCullers, I think this is the third outing he’s thrown against us, and I literally don’t think I have put the ball in play against him until that. I think I walked, got hit by a pitch and struck out a whole lot of times. So, to be able to do that, especially with a two-strike count, is pretty exciting, and one of the most exciting times I’ve had recently individually.”
The 24-year-old, who signed an unprecedented extension with the Mariners last offseason without ever playing a game above Double-A, hasn’t found much consistency at the plate his debut season.
Entering Tuesday’s game against the Astros, White was slashing at .181/.263/.350 through 48 games, with his average ranking the lowest among qualified hitters in the majors, and his 72 strikeouts ranking fourth.
“It wasn’t exactly how I imagined it starting,” White said in August. “But, it’s a learning experience and an opportunity to grow.”
Manager Scott Servais has cautioned that the batting average doesn’t always show everything. White has put together more quality at-bats more often since the midway point in August. Since logging his first career multi-homer game with a pair of homers against the Dodgers in Los Angeles on Aug. 17, White has hit .235/.316/.447, and has six multi-hit games in the five weeks since.
“It often doesn’t tell the whole story,” Servais said recently. “But, it’s what we’re attracted to. It’s been a statistic in our game for a long, long time. It’s never going to go away. I think what we’ve seen out of Evan this year has been some ups, some downs. … But, I think at the end of the year, Evan will look back and say, ‘OK, here’s what I learned. Here’s the adjustments I think I need to make that will prepare me next year to be more consistent throughout the season.’ ”
When White has gone through consistent stretches this season, he’s made it count. Last month, he became the first player in Mariners history to collect six RBI in a game in his first 30 career games.
His 24 RBI this season ranked fourth among all qualified rookies entering Tuesday, as did his seven home runs, and his six doubles and 17 walks each ranked tied for sixth.
Per Statcast, White’s average exit velocity this season of 92.3 mph was leading all rookies with more than 70 plate appearances entering the day. His hard hit percentage was 53.9%, also the leading mark.
He had an active four-game hitting streak entering the day and, of course, his three-run blast Monday night was one of the more clutch hits the Mariners have had this season.
“I think he’s learned a ton this season,” Servais said postgame Monday. “He realizes that he’s got a lot of room for growth. He’s got some adjustments he needs to make throughout the course of the offseason, and going into next year. He’s learned a lot. It’s nice to see him finish strong. Really want all of our young guys to finish out this season on a positive note.”
