By Mason Nesbitt, TMU Sports Information Director

Preston White, an alum of The Master’s University who touched 97 MPH off the mound this season, said Wednesday that he had signed with the San Francisco Giants.

The move took place Tuesday, less than a week after the club picked White in the 24th round of the MLB First-Year Player Draft. It was the fourth time in the last three years that the Giants picked a player from Master’s.

White said that he would begin his pro career in the Arizona League (rookie ball), which opens play Monday and competes in spring training stadiums in the Phoenix area. TMU alums Conner Menez and Brandon Van Horn currently play for San Francisco’s High-A affiliate in San Jose.

“It’s exciting,” White said. “But there are a bunch of guys here and a lot of work to be done.”

White, a junior last season, said after the draft that he envisioned himself signing with the Bay Area ball club but wasn’t positive. Now he officially won’t return to the Mustangs after regularly locking down late innings in 2018.

White recorded a team-high six saves and posted a 3.43 ERA in 44 2/3 innings. He struck out 40 and walked 14. He also served as the team’s everyday right fielder (.326 batting average, 21 extra-base hits), but it was his arm and projectability off the mound that drew slews of scouts to TMU’s Reese Field during his one season at Master’s.

White, a transfer from Birmingham-Southern College, stands at 6-foot-6 with a live fastball and developing secondary pitches. According to White, Giants scout Chuck Fick is “big on character.”

“He loves guys who are going to work hard and aren’t going to mess around,” White said of Fick, who scouted Menez (2016 Giants 14th round pick), Van Horn (2016, Giants, 19th) and Michael Sexton (2017, Giants, 14th).

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