By Sean Reilly
Blaise Welsh did a little bit of everything over the weekend at Diamond Nation, and it helped his Flores Baseball Braves 10U Red team capture the 10U Slugfest tournament championship.
In addition to leaving with a first-place medal, Welsh also earned the tournament’s Most Valuable Player trophy after his team gained a 12-2 victory over Makina Select 10U in the final on Sunday afternoon.
Welsh was a supreme table setter as the leadoff man for the FB Braves.
He went 8-for-10 over the four tournament games, three of which were victories. He also walked twice, scored six runs and added two RBI.
Welsh was just as valuable as a pitcher, first throwing two hitless innings, with five strikeouts and one walk as a reliever in a pool victory on Saturday.
Matched against Dream Chasers Academy in the semifinal round earlier on Sunday, he pitched a complete-game six-hitter, with eight strikeouts and no walks, in a 10-3 win.
He was also 2-for-2 in that game, along with a walk and sacrifice fly.
“I usually only pitch three innings,” he said. “It felt really good to pitch a complete game. The last time I had a changeup work that well was a month ago. I could tell it was working in the first inning.”
The FB Braves scored three times in the top of the first in the semifinal win. After Welsh led off with a walk, Devon Fennimore was credited with a single when his grounder hit Welsh. Julian Park followed with an RBI triple to center and he scored as Austin Sarno singled to left. Christian Savidge singled to right, with Sarno stopping at second. Sarno would eventually score on a two-out wild pitch.
The Dream Chasers got two runs back in the second. Sebastian Reyes stole home in tandem with Dylan Sanchez on a first and third baserunning play. Cameron Martinez also hit an RBI double.
Blaise Welsh of FB Braves 10U Red was named 10U Slugfest Most Valuable Player.
The FB Braves scored three more runs in the fourth. Charlie Monnier led off with a single between the pitcher and second baseman, Bennett Park walked, and after a wild pitch advanced both, Chris Choi hit a two-run double to right-center. Joey Plata bunted Choi to third, and Welsh hit a sacrifice fly to center for a 6-2 lead.
Savidge and Bennett Park added RBI singles in the fifth inning, and after Welsh singled and Fennimore hit a grounds rule double to left to begin the sixth inning, both scored on the same wild pitch with Julian Park at the plate.
Aside from Welsh, the FB Braves got two hits apiece from Fennimore, Julian Park, Savidge and Monnier.
In the championship against Makina Select, Welsh was again 2-for-2 with a walk. He scored twice and drove in a run.
The score was 2-2 when the FB Braves scored twice in the bottom of the second. Bennett Park then supplied an RBI ground out and Welsh hit an RBI single to shortstop with two out for a 4-2 lead.
The FB Braves blew the game open with a seven-run third for an 11-2 lead.
The inning featured an RBI single from Bennett Park, with the other runs scoring on errors and wild pitches.
Julian Park and Fennimore each pitched two innings to combine on a four-inning one-hitter.
Bennett Park, who went 2-for-3, with three RBI, joined Welsh as a multiple-hit player for the FB Braves.