79-year-old rancher feels at home on a saddle or in the batter's box

 Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

Arnie White has been a member of the 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers since 2010. Arnie was born in Fulton, New York, a long time ago. Well,  not so long ago if you consider his teammates on the TOTS  range in age from 60 to 94.

Like so many members of the TOTS, White has had a career which borders on the unbelievable. A fighter pilot, a commercial pilot, a retired professor from the University of Arizona, a golf instructor, and a rancher who lives with his wife, Michelle, on 85 acres, outside of Red Lodge, Montana.

Like all TOTS, Arnie loves to play the game of baseball and he's back on the field at Udall Park this fall and winter playing one of the games he loves. Golf may be a close second or just may be No. 1 on his list. Arnie is and has always been a well-conditioned athlete.

Arnie turned 79 on November 11, 2020 and he can still pull a baseball with the best of them.

Today, Arnie was back on the field at Udall and on his first at bat in a TOTS' game in more than six months, he drills a shot to left field on the first pitch off Team Blue's hard-throwing, right-hander Reed Palmer.

Like so many others on the TOTS, Arnie is forced into battling health issues. White has developed Parkinson's, but it hasn't stopped him from playing ball or riding horses. Today, Arnie came down off the saddle and stepped into the batter's box.

"It's frustrating," says White. "I just can't be as mobile as I used to be."

Like all the TOTS, White has no quit in him and he plans to make a trip to Montana soon to pick up his horses and bring them to Tucson for the winter...and, of course,  he will continue to step into the batter's box and play ball with the Tucson Old Timers.

Arnie is right at home on a golf course, ramrodding his ranch or at Udall Park swinging for the fences. He's also at home in the air as well. White has pretty much done it all.

Happy Birthday, Arnie.

Photo: Arnie White

TOTS note: Team White edged Team Blue 6-4 today at Udall. Mike Dawson picked up the win and Palmer was saddled with the loss. Palmer blasted his second home run in 10 days, but both homers were unofficial. Both teams were short a player today and last Friday and both games did not count in the regular monthly statistics. Palmer has 11 homers this year, officially.