Posted by Press Democrat Staff Writer Michael Coit:

After helping build a winning baseball program at Sonoma State, longtime assistant coach Walter White is taking over the top post at Cal State Monterey Bay.

White faces building a winning tradition for a team that went 8-41 in 2010. He is the second head coach for Cal State Monterey Bay.

For the past 16 years, White has been a top assistant to Seawolves’ head coach John Goelz.

“Sonoma State has been like family to me,” White said. “Coach Goelz gave me a great opportunity and he has been a great mentor along the way. I’ve been here for 18 years and this is really all I’ve ever known, but this experience at SSU has helped me develop personally and professionally. It is bittersweet to move on.”

Cal State Monterey Bay should become a much better team under White, Goelz said.

“I’m excited for Walt. I think it’s great. It is a huge opportunity for him,” Goelz said. “He is a real good coach and we’ve had a lot of success here together and now we can both build on what we’ve gotten from each other. I think that if he applies what he learned, Cal State Monterey Bay is going to be very good in the next couple of years.”

White started at shortstop for Sonoma State in 1993 and 1994, and was inducted into the SSU Athletics Hall of Fame two years ago.

White was drafted in the 32nd round of the 1994 Major League Baseball Draft by the Florida Marlins and spent five seasons in their system. After a trade to the Arizona Diamondbacks, he played three seasons at Triple-A Tucson.