CENTENNIAL — On his 18th birthday, Tim Shaffer popped out twice, committed an error and wasn’t exactly orthodox in performing the hit-and-run play.
The popouts and the error were inconsequential Tuesday for the Arapahoe senior second baseman. What he did after the hit-and-run play was called helped ignite the Warriors to a rout of Chaparral in a Class 5A nonleague baseball game.
On a typical hit-and-run play, a runner steals second base while the hitter attempts to punch the ball through the hole vacated by the second baseman. Shaffer knocked the ball out of the park instead. The third-inning blast to center gave the Warriors (1-0) a 4-0 lead and turned out to provide the decisive runs.
“Well, to be honest with you, it doesn’t happen too often for me,” Shaffer said of the round-tripper, only the second of his high school career. “Coach (Luke Muller) had the steal sign on, so I tried to give him a hit-and-run. I just liked the pitch. It got a little wind and it carried out.”
Pinch-hitter Adam Lindell added a dagger grand slam in the bottom of the sixth, and Arapahoe invoked the 10-run rule later in the inning. A half-inning prior, Chaparral had the bases loaded trailing 6-2, but Warriors starter and winning pitcher Alex Manning coaxed a tapper back to the mound to avert the threat.
Manning pitched all six innings. He gave up six hits while striking out six.
“I was keeping it strong mentally,” said Manning, a junior varsity player last year. “I knew I could go out there and throw strikes. My cutter was working better than my slider, which kind of surprised me. I went out there and got lots of K’s early, then had to rely on my defense as it got going.”
Chaparral (2-1) was coming off a lopsided win against No. 8 Green Mountain but fielded poorly (four errors) and pitched wildly (nine walks).
“There’s a lot of things we could have done better from beginning to end,” said Wolverines right fielder Taylor Ginn, whose two-run homer in the fourth was Chaparral’s lone highlight. “We just didn’t start out good.”
No argument there. The Wolverines committed three errors and walked three batters in the first, spotting Arapahoe a 2-0 lead. Soon after, Shaffer made his birthday one to remember.
000 200 — 2 6 4
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