Wildcat pitcher Ben White doesn't have the strongest arm on the staff. He doesn't have the best stuff. He's not even on the starting rotation. White's not even the best player in his family - his father Tim played catcher for the Cincinnati Reds.

The one thing White does have, though, is control. It is that control that has made him the most effective pitcher on the team, and one of the best pitchers in the Pacific 10 Conference Southern Division.

In 1993, as a senior at Tucson's Salpointe Catholic High School, White was considered the best baseball player in Arizona. He compiled a record of 12-0 with an 0.87 ERA and led the Lancers to a Southern Arizona Championship. Now, in his senior year at Arizona, White is ranked eighth in overall pitching in the Six-Pac and is the most dependable pitcher on the Wildcat staff. Not bad for a guy who was recruited as hitter out of high school after batting .485 with six home runs and 30 RBI in his senior year.

"When I came to Arizona, I saw myself as a hitter first," White said. "But when I was a freshman, we had a tremendous offensive team. And by necessity and by the coaches' decisions, I have been converted into a full time pitcher and that's the way it is. Now I am a pitcher and I think it is what I do best to contribute to this team."

White almost didn't come to Arizona.

He signed a letter of intent with Pima Community College, but later decided to play for the Wildcats.

"I was not highly recruited by other schools," White said. "This is where I always wanted to play. I guess you could call me a fan. My father played here. This is where I wanted to go."

The coaches are high on White, too. Head coach Jerry Kindall says that White is a good role model for the other pitchers.

"Ben is a bright young man," Kindall said. "He has been very dependable. He has good control and he's a battler. The defense likes to play behind him because he doesn't beat himself by walking batters or throwing wild pitches."

In his years at Arizona, White's performance has fluctuated. In his freshman year, he had a 1-1 record with 2 saves and a 5.28 ERA. The next season he started 13 games and went 4-8 with a 7.09 ERA. He had a rough junior year with his only win against seven losses coming against Arizona State in relief. This year, White has broken out. He is currently 3-3 with a team-leading five saves and a 3.93 ERA. White has 35 strikeouts and allowed just 13 walks in 18 games.

"I've learned how to deal with extreme success and extreme failure, to the point of tears on both sides," White said. "I've lost a game at Cal State-Fullerton in front of a lot of people in the ninth inning all by myself. And I've thrown great games against great teams. I beat UCLA at UCLA my freshman year. You learn to see the good through all the bad."

White is the pitcher that the Wildcats use to win games. He comes in to relieve the starter or middle-reliever, and does his best to keep the opposing team from scoring.

"We go to Ben as quickly as we have to," Kindall said. "He doesn't start because he is so crucial out of the bullpen."

White has shown the maturity of his years on the team. He is flattered to be considered one of the best pitchers in the talent-laden conference.

"When you put me in that category, you're putting me with guys who have turned down a lot of money (from professional teams) to come to college," White said. "I don't throw 90 (miles per hour), and I'm not 6-5. One thing I think I do as well as anybody is that I don't ever give up on the mound. I may give up a double and a single, but I always know that I'm going to get out of it somehow. That's what I've done this year to put up the numbers that I have. I don't have overpowering stuff, but what I do have, I think, is tenacity on the mound. I'll go to battle against any hitter they'll send up there, and I'll out-battle him. I'm very proud of that."