After slow start, Evan White's bat heating up

There was no doubt, from the moment he stepped on the field on Opening Day, that Evan White's defense at first base was going to help the Mariners. But the bat? That's taken a little time.

White hit just .104 over his first 19 games in the Majors, with 31 strikeouts in 73 plate appearances. Yet there was no panic among the Mariners' brass who had watched their 2017 first-round Draft pick develop as a hitter in the Minor Leagues over the past two years.

Now that patience has started to pay off, as the 24-year-old slugged three home runs in a span of nine plate appearances over the past three games, culminating with a two-homer game in Monday's 11-9 loss to the Dodgers.

The ability to relax and play naturally is a huge challenge for any player making the jump to the big leagues and White -- who went straight from Double-A to the Majors -- says he's benefited from a recent talk with manager Scott Servais on that topic.

"You go through stretches like that," White said. "Typically, it's not to start a season, especially at the highest level of the game. So that was definitely a challenge from the mental side. I wanted to prove myself to my teammates that I was a guy they could rely on. So it was definitely a challenge going through that.

"But the biggest thing is, about a week ago, I had a conversation with [Servais] just about enjoying the entire process. I'm a good enough hitter that it would turn around and just trust my work, day in and day out. Really, it's just having fun with it. You're going to play your best baseball when you're having fun and enjoying your teammates and being a good teammate. So I think that's been the biggest thing."

Young hitters who struggle often get tied up trying to overthink things and follow advice from too many directions, so Servais kept his message simple.

"My conversation had nothing to do with mechanics of hitting or anything like that," Servais said. "That's what the hitting coaches do, and they do a great job with him. But I think he's the first to recognize his ability to slow it down -- and you can see it. He's taking pitches he should be taking. He's much more in control right now in the batter's box, which is great to see.

"We all know the ability is there. Some guys it takes a little longer to get comfortable, and it's certainly starting to come around for him."

White's hard-hit rate has been one of the highest on the team, but his swing-and-miss percentage has been sky high as well. Easing up on the throttle and not over-swinging comes with confidence, and the recent results certainly have helped.

White's challenge now is to not try to make up for the slow start all at once, or as he said, to turn his .100 start into .300 overnight.

"The past week I've had a lot better at-bats and feel a lot more comfortable," White said. "Obviously I wish I could have turned it around a little quicker. But that's the reality of it. I can't go back and change it. I just have to embrace it and go out and work my butt off each day and everything else will take care of itself."

Short takes
• Outfielder Mallex Smith was optioned to the Mariners' alternate training site prior to Tuesday's game against the Dodgers, with reliever Art Warren activated off the taxi squad to give Seattle an extra bullpen arm for the final game of the road trip.

Smith hit just .133 in 14 games and had lost playing time in right field to Dylan Moore over the past two weeks. Warren's arrival helps bolster a relief crew that had to cover seven innings in Monday's game after starter Justin Dunn took a line drive to the ribs.

• Dunn was still sore on Tuesday with a bruise in his lower rib cage and Servais said it's too early to tell if the rookie right-hander will be ready for his next scheduled start on Sunday against the Rangers in Seattle.

• The news was better on lefty Yusei Kikuchi, whose sore neck is finally feeling better. Kikuchi skipped his last start Friday in Houston due to neck spasms, but he threw a bullpen session Tuesday afternoon at Dodger Stadium and Servais said he was "pretty confident" the 29-year-old will be able to make his next start Thursday against the Dodgers at T-Mobile Park.

• Mariners catcher Tom Murphy was transferred from the 10-day injured iist to the 45-day IL, retroactive to July 20. That opens a spot on Seattle's 40-man roster, which is now at 39. Murphy is dealing with a broken bone in his left foot and is still having an issue when he runs or gets into a catcher's stance that puts pressure on the foot.

Murphy, the club's starting catcher, hurt the foot during Summer Camp and has yet to play in a game this season. He'll be eligible to come off the injured list on Sept. 4.