White May Not Be Leading Man : Angels: Center fielder still carrying burden of potential heading into fourth season.

MESA, Ariz. —  If he allowed himself to be burdened by what others have always expected of him, Devon White would never steal a base for the Angels or run down a fly ball.

“Everybody says I should hit .300, but things just don’t happen like that,” he said. “For some people it does. I’m one of those guys who has to work hard at what I do.”

What he has done is patrol center field splendidly, earning a Gold Glove for his fielding each of the past two seasons. What he hasn’t done is have an explosive year at the plate, which would fulfill the rich promise he showed as a rookie in 1987 and make him the offensive catalyst the Angels so urgently need.

White hit .263 with 24 home runs, 87 runs batted in and 32 stolen bases in his first season, only the sixth Angel--and first rookie--to reach 20 in both homers and steals in one season. His home run production in 1988 fell to 11, his average to .259 and his stolen base total to 17, the result of persistent rib and knee injuries.

When he reached the All-Star break last season with a .259 average, nine homers and 39 RBIs, all appeared well for him to enjoy a big season, but much of that promise went unrealized again.

White slumped badly in the second half, hitting only .216 in August and .198 in September and October as the Angels faded out of the American League West race. He finished at .245 with 12 home runs and 56 RBIs, a career-high 44 stolen bases and a club record-tying 13 triples, but he struck out 129 times and walked only 31 times.

“I tailed off a lot,” White said of his late-season slump. “I felt I was tired and I tried to do too much. I was disappointed, but everybody gets disappointed some time. . . . They expected me to do a lot better than I did, but I just didn’t perform.”

Although Manager Doug Rader has carefully avoided setting expectations for White, Rader may expect the 27-year-old White to hit leadoff this year. Rader doesn’t want to use several players in the leadoff spot, as he did last season, but he’s not yet sure who is best suited for the role.

It’s not a role White relishes, even though he was the only AL player last season to start at least 20 games in both the leadoff and cleanup spots. He says he doesn’t see himself as a leadoff hitter because, “I’m pretty much aggressive--I’m not very patient.” Dick Schofield performed creditably leading off last season before being hurt, but in musing about his batting order for this season, Rader keeps turning back to White in the leadoff spot.

“Brian (Downing) has a better on-base percentage, but Devo has better speed,” Rader said. “You have to give Devon a chance to see if he can do it there and grow into the job. With Brian’s power, for him to be in the middle of the lineup, able to drive runs in, he’d be very valuable to us.

“The important thing is for Devo to take advantage of the skills he has. In Devon’s case, a man with that kind of speed who switch-hits, leadoff is ideal. Put a fellow in a position where he can have some success, and he’ll feel comfortable there.”

If Rader wants him to bat leadoff, White will try to become comfortable there, perhaps as much out of respect for his manager as respect for himself.

“From my experience last year, he seems to let everybody be himself and do what they can,” White said. “He doesn’t put pressure on you, and I like that kind of manager. I’m old enough to know what I have to do--I don’t need to be told. Some major leaguers need to be told. I don’t.”

He knows he needs to be more patient at the plate to be successful in the leadoff spot, and he intends to teach himself to be more selective.

“Playing every day, I’m learning every day I go out there,” he said. “I can definitely live with (hitting leadoff). I’m not saying anything is wrong with it, but if it were my choice, I wouldn’t want to be there.”

He chose not to specify the goals he has set for himself at the plate this season, but he considers a 30-30 season--30 home runs and 30 stolen bases--to be possible.

“I feel it could happen, but everything’s got to fall into place,” he said. “I’d need a fast start and to continue strong. I just expect to have a good and consistent year. I like to walk away from a game and say I did all I could.”