Little League Baseball

Sunnyside wins District 12 Junior League championship behind Blasi’s five-inning no-hitter

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Sunnyside went 3-0 in the District 12 Juniors tournament, outscoring the opposition 31-1 in the process (Javier Morales/AllSportsTucson.com)

Sunnyside’s lineup was opportunistic against San Xavier while starting pitcher David Blasi shut down any opportunities to score against him.

Sunnyside, which includes players from Randolph Little League, won 15-0 in five innings at Lawrence Park on Saturday night behind Blasi’s no-hitter and its ability to generate runs off eight errors and 12 walks.

Blasi struck out three and walked three and did not allow a baserunner to reach third base.

“I felt great; my defense had my back,” said Blasi, referring to his teammates not committing an error, turning a double play and successfully executing a pickoff of a runner between second and third base.

Sunnyside, which went 3-0 while outscoring opponents 31-1 in the district tournament, advances to the state tournament that begins July 7 at Payson.

Tito Rodriguez, the manager, is highly confident of his team’s chances in the state tournament, given how it played during the week at Lawrence Park.

“I think we’re probably the best team in the state right now,” Rodriguez said. “These kids have heart. These kids can play. They showed it.”

From the beginning, Sunnyside appeared ready.

It scored five runs in the top of the first, all unearned, taking advantage of three errors and four walks. Alain Lara had one of the two hits in the inning, an RBI single.

After Blasi retired San Xavier in order in the bottom of the first, Sunnyside increased the lead to 6-0 in the top of the second behind Andres Valenzuela‘s RBI double.

“We play as a family. We play as a team. We never give up on each other,” Blasi said of Sunnyside’s cohesiveness and relentless attack at the plate.

Blasi walked the leadoff batter in the bottom of the second, but the player was later caught in a rundown between second and third for the second out. Blasi then struck out the last batter.

Sunnyside blew the game open in the top of the third, taking a 12-0 lead following a six-run rally.

A walk and a hit-by-pitch occurred before Cesar Aguilar’s two-run single, the only hit of the inning. Five walks and three errors helped generate the other four runs.

“I have 13 players and they all have sticks,” Rodriguez said. “They all can move. They know when to hit.

“My pitchers make all the calls. I don’t need to do that. They’re trained to do that, to make all the calls and the plays, everything that happens on the field. I think I have a complete team this year and it’s going to be great. We’re going to give everybody a run for their money at state.”

The lead became 13-0 in the fourth inning after Valenzuela singled, stole second and third base and scored on a fielder’s choice ground out hit by Emilio Medina.

Another leadoff walk in the bottom of the fourth did not adversely affect Blasi. After a strikeout, a double play from third baseman Adrian Shinn to Valenzuela at second to first baseman Rodolpho Carbajal ended the inning.

Sunnyside scored its last two runs in the top of the fifth inning, taking advantage of a couple of walks, two errors, and a wild pitch.

Blasi closed the game, retiring the side in the fifth on a lineout and two groundouts.

He faced 16 batters in the five innings, only one over the minimum.

“I told him when we first started the game, ‘Hey David, I need you. This is what I need from you. This is what I need you to do,'” Rodriguez said. “And he said, ‘I got you coach. I’m your veteran. I’m going to do it for you. I’m going to close it out today.'”

Blasi has experience at the state tournament level, helping to pitch Sunnyside to the Majors (Little League) that far last summer.

“He’s one of my veterans this year,” Rodriguez said. “I know he’s going to help us through it this year.”

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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon. He became an educator in 2016 and is presently a special education teacher at Sunnyside High School in the Sunnyside Unified School District.

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