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Some people like clothes, shoes or cars.
For Lansing Lugnuts infielder Tommy White, jewelry is his thing. That's why he was sporting a pair of gold chains Monday afternoon at Lugnuts media day at Jackson Field.
Spectators will notice the chains right away. But when White takes the field, there's a good chance fans will come to know him for slugging home runs.
White was one of the top sluggers in college baseball over the past three seasons, first setting a Division I record with 27 home runs during his freshman year at North Carolina State before hitting 24 homers each of the past two years for baseball power LSU.
That success made the 22-year-old White the No. 40 overall pick by the Athletics in last year's Major League Baseball draft.
White, who enters the season ranked by MLB Pipeline as the No. 8 overall prospect in the Athletics' minor league system, will try to showcase his talents with the Lugnuts this year as he begins his first full season as a professional.
The first opportunity for White to take the field as a Lugnut will come at 6 p.m. Tuesday when they face Michigan State in the annual Crosstown Showdown exhibition at Jackson Field.
"I'm just putting my head down and working hard and trying to make hard contact with every pitch that comes my way," White said. "I'm just doing what I can do to help the team win (and) if the situation presents itself, (I want) to get the job done every time."
White got his first taste of pro ball last season with a 25-game stint with the Stockton Ports, the low-A affiliate of the Athletics. He had two home runs and 14 RBI in 107 at-bats.
While that was valuable experience, White is bracing for what is to come as he navigates a full season schedule in Lansing.
"It's definitely a learning curve from college and going to 130 games a season," White said. "The longevity of it and focusing on every game and bringing it every single day — that's probably going to be the next step and what I'm going to work for and strive for."
First-year Lugnuts manager Darryl Kennedy, who has won more than 1,000 games during a lengthy career in the minors, is excited about working with White this season.
"The one thing about Tommy is he always looks serious no matter what," Kennedy said. "He can be 4-for-4 or 0-for-4 and you still see that same face. He brings it every day and that's what I like about him."
Outside of his play on the diamond, White is striving to make a strong impression off the field as well.
"It is being the right person and teammate," White said. "I want a little kid in the stands to say that's a good guy. The flash, the home runs, that's cool and all, but I want to be a good teammate and a good Christian guy."
Contact Brian Calloway at [email protected]. Follow him on X @brian_calloway.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Slugger Tommy White among headliners on Lansing Lugnuts' roster
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