Dodgers 2019 Player Reviews: Tyler White

Jeff Spiegel Published December 4, 2019

3 Min Read

Kelvin Kuo/USA TODAY Sports

In 2018, Tyler White was a key piece of the Houston Astros offense down the stretch — hitting 12 home runs in just 66 games while producing an .887 on-base plus slugging percentage. In 2019? He was designated for assignment before being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for a low-level prospect.

So what changed?

White played in 71 games for Houston this year, batting .225/.320/.330 with just three home runs. After coming over to the Dodgers he was even worse (.045/.192/.045 in 26 at-bats) before being shut down for the season.

At 29 years old, White isn’t exactly a developmental prospect — but if you’re looking for reason to believe this all could pan out — which the Dodgers could use given the retirement of David Freese) — White has been treated for a thyroid issue and lost weight.

The Dodgers apparently began treating the issue and as a result, White looks to be in far better physical shape than what’s previously been seen.

If that’s the case, and if he can regain his 2018 form, White would fill an immediate need for the Dodgers: a right-handed bat off the bench that can fill in at first base when needed.

2019 Highlight

Leaving Houston and coming to Los Angeles? Has to be the highlight, right? Yeah, that one was easy.

An honorable mention could be when White went 2-for-3 with two doubles, two RBI and a walk in the Astros’ 14-2 rout of the L.A. Angels back in May.

2020 Outlook

White is the quintessential project for the Dodgers. He’s someone who has shown signs of brilliance, but who is stuck in a rut. If the health issue is under control and the Dodgers and tweak his swing, he really does fill a need for the team and could be a huge asset moving forward.

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TAGGED:2019 Player Reviews Los Angeles Dodgers Tyler White

By Jeff Spiegel

Jeff Spiegel was raised in California but currently resides in Portland, Oregon. After graduating from the University of Oregon, he worked in sports before entering journalism full time — first as a Sports Reporter and then as the Associate Editor of a local newspaper. Online, he has been writing about both the Dodgers and Raiders since 2012 — having written for DodgersNation.com and SBNation.com prior to joining both DodgerBlue.com and RaidersNation.com. He left full-time journalism in 2012 to become a pastor. Jeff can be found on Twitter at @JeffSpiegel. Favorite Dodger I'm going past and present (sort of) on this one. Recently, I was a die hard Yasiel Puig guy. The energy he played with was amazing and the hope and expectation he brought every single night was captivating. Whether it was a rifle from the warning track to throw a guy out at second, an aggressive bat flip or licking his bat, I was here for ALL of the Yasiel Puig era. Past tense, I'd go with Eric Gagné. This wasn't so much about Gagné himself as it was the experience of cheering for him. Yes, he was on steroids — but the dude was unlike any pitcher I've ever seen — he was NASTY. I still stand by the claim that if I needed one out and my life depended on it, and could choose any pitcher from any era to get me that out, I'm taking roided up Gagné in a heartbeat. Favorite Dodger Moment A few jump to mind immediately. Being born in November of 1988, I missed the last World Series by weeks — which also meant I didn't get to see the Dodgers win a playoff game until I was nearly 16. They had made the playoffs in 1995 and 1996, but were swept both times. In 2004, though, I got to see them win behind a complete game shutout from Jose Lima, and that was pretty freaking special. The next in-person moment that came to mind was the Manny Ramirez bobblehead night pinch-hit grand slam from 2009. Vin Scully claimed it was the loudest he had heard Dodger Stadium in 20 years, and it's hard to disagree. As far as ones I didn't get to see live, I'll throw one more out there: the back-to-back-to-back-to-back home runs that tied a game against the Padres in 2006 (plus the walk-off from Nomar Garciaparra in extra innings) was an all-timer. Obviously, the impending Dodgers World Series will quickly jump to the top of this list...