LORMAN &045; Maybe Gregory White has finally found a home at third base.

At least that’s what Alcorn’s coaching staff is hoping, as is everyone else in the infield. If you ask him personally, it may not matter where he’s at in the field because he’s played six different positions in the field since he arrived at Alcorn two seasons ago.

But third base &045; that’s a first for him. Yet with the way he’s swinging the bat this season, coaches will put him somewhere.

&uot;It looks like I’m going to be there,&uot; White said. &uot;Wherever coach tells me to play, I’ll go and play. Sometimes it gets kind of stressful not knowing where you’re going to play, but I’m just blessed to be in the lineup somewhere. My teammates are keeping me in the game and keeping me focused, and I just feed off their enthusiasm.&uot;

As long as White continues to improve in the field and produce at the plate, his days of being a late-inning replacement or a who-knows-where starter may be over. The junior out of the Delta may be the most improved player on the Braves’ team this spring but played a number of positions up until a couple of weeks ago.

For that Alabama State series White went to third base when Jermaine Clarke moved to first base, and that may be the way things go from here on out.

White will get the start at third today when the Braves open a crucial three-game set at Mississippi Valley.

&uot;The reason we moved him to third base was we were trying to get more offense in the lineup,&uot; Alcorn head coach Willie &uot;Rat&uot; McGowan said. &uot;Greg really is a shortstop, and he did excellent at shortstop in the fall. But we use Jermaine as a pitcher, and we’re trying to take some of the pressure off his arm. We need him at first base.&uot;

White has been a utility player of sorts since he arrived at Alcorn and played second, short, all outfield positions and even pitched for the Braves as a freshman and sophomore. He started out this season in that mode until he started contributing big-time at the plate.

His .387 batting average was too hard to ignore. He’s even moved up and down the lineup here lately, but that doesn’t bother him, either.

&uot;I’m just trying to relax at the plate and watch the ball,&uot; he said. &uot;I got a better work ethic from Corey (Wimberly) and watching what he’s doing. I put pressure on myself the most, and they tell me to just relax and that I’m a pretty good player and just do what I need to do. I’ve basically been working and learning the game. I felt like I was trying to do too much my freshman year.&uot;

&uot;I’m just trying to relax and hit it somewhere. My dad stresses that to me &045; just put it in play, and it’ll find a hole somewhere.&uot;

White has had a chance to bond with Wimberly, the speedy second baseman who is a leading candidate for SWAC Player of the Year after earning the preseason honor back in February. Both have similar physiques and similar skills &045; speed, arm and quick bat.

The speed is nothing new. That’s how McGowan signed him back in the summer of 2002 when he attended a summer camp, lined up against then-Braves Edrick Patton and Kris Peters and out-ran the two fastest players on the team.

White and Wimberly are not only one-two on the team in batting average (.462-.387) but stolen bases (38-16) as well.

White had only 53 at-bats last season while appearing in 31 games with 17 starts, but this spring he’s right behind Wimberly at the top in that category with 28 starts in 30 games and third in at-bats with 93.

His strikeouts are down &045; he has 12 in 93 at-bats after fanning 12 times last season &045; and has his slugging percentage up to .518.

&uot;Once he starts hitting that ball, he’s a streak hitter,&uot; McGowan said. &uot;He wasn’t quite ready last year starting off, but there at the end &045; you look at the games against Valley and Jackson &045; he pounded them. He really came on at the end. Greg has been around here. He’s a junior, and he’s come into his own. He’s got a lot of speed, but sometimes he makes poor decisions on baserunning. Once he gets that figured out, he’s really going to be something.&uot;

White may not be that big of a surprise at third with his arm strength, although his adjustment remains a work in progress. For the season he’s had 14 errors in 56 opportunities, but now he’s starting to get comfortable at the position.

&uot;He’s got the best arm on the team, and he can play anywhere,&uot; graduate assistant Luis Marquez said. &uot;Sometimes he tries too hard. But he’s getting better. What I think it is is he’s learning the game. Before he would play on ability.

&uot;He’s good. He’s got some talent. When I got here, (assistant) Coach (Marqus) Johnson told me, ‘That is your project right there.’ Most of the errors are throwing errors &045; they’re not fielding errors.&uot;

The improvement continues for White, who will have family in attendance this weekend at Valley. He credits much of it to the chemistry on this year’s club with the high number of newcomers on the roster.

And that may make it easier to switch positions from one game to another. White just wants to win like everybody else.

&uot;We’ve got good speed, and it just seems like our team is clicking together,&uot; White said. &uot;Everybody trusts each other to do the job. We’re just having more fun this year on and off the field. We’re shooting for a sweep (this weekend). Every series we want to sweep, but we’re trying to play to our potential. We should win if we play to our potential.&uot;