LORAIN — Keystone’s Kyle Shaw wondered what all the attention and congratulations were all about prior to Saturday’s annual Lorain County Senior All-Star baseball game at Pipe Yard Stadium.
Normally the Mr. Baseball Award isn’t announced until between games of the all-star doubleheader, but Shaw’s name was listed in the program tipping off spectators of the selection.
“I didn’t even know coming in until we got the program and saw it in there,” said Shaw’s coach, Mark Clements.
“I just want to thank my coach and my teammates,” Shaw said. “I’m very thankful. I want to thank my parents, too. I couldn’t have done this without them.
“I just found out about it (Saturday). Everybody just kept coming up to me and saying congratulations. My summer coach, Mr. (Bruce) Chenoweth, came up to me and asked if I’d seen the program. He showed me. I was shocked.”
“That was an oopsy,” Clements said with a smile.    
Shaw hadn’t given the award too much thought, but he knew it was out there.
“Two years ago when that Vermilion pitcher (Andy Oliver) got it, I wanted to get it because I thought it was cool and a big pleasure,” Shaw said.” I guess you could say it was a goal I had in mind.”
The award is the perfect finish to an outstanding career for Shaw, who will pitch for the University of Toledo on a baseball scholarship next year. A left-hander, Shaw not only pitched well for the Wildcats, but batted over .400 for his career, including .488 this season. Shaw was also an outstanding football and basketball player.
“I did some career stats for us,” Clements said. “He batted .440 (career) and his pitching stats were phenomenal. He faced almost 800 batters and struck out almost 200 of them.”
Shaw is a three-year letterman and helped lead Keystone to the regional finals a year ago. This year he was 5-1 with a 2.38 ERA and 65 strikeouts. Offensively, he had 40 hits, scored 31 runs, had 12 doubles, three triples and four home runs while driving in 34.
“We’re losing a quality baseball player,” said Clements, who has coached Shaw since his days in youth baseball. “Baseball’s always been his first love. He enjoyed playing football and basketball but baseball was his true love. This is a very deserving award for him to cap off his great career.
“His baseball presence was just big for us.”
Shaw was unable to play Saturday. He suffered a broken finger on his pitching hand in practice prior to his final start — unaware until after the season was complete that it was broken. His hand will be in a cast for the next five to six weeks, delaying his summer baseball debut with Elyria Post 12 in American Legion play.
“I went to catch a ball,” he said. “It was a bad throw to the right and I went to catch it with both hands and it hit my knuckle. It didn’t really hurt that bad, but after a while it starting swelling up a little bit. A little ice helped.”
Shaw’s parents — Rick and Laurie — almost went to a wedding instead of  the game because Kyle wasn’t scheduled to play.
“We’re extremely proud,” Rick said. “I guess even more so than the family, it’s a reflection upon the program and Mark Clements as a coach. He’s been Kyle’s coach since he was like 7 years old. It’s a nice way to finalize that relationship.”
“I’m really proud of him,” echoed Laurie. “I’m really proud of our organization — Keystone athletics. Basketball, baseball — all of our programs have been just wonderful.”
Shaw’s grandfather, Larry Shaw, has been a coaching icon in area circles for football, basketball and softball. Most recently he’s been involved in cable television broadcasts of Keystone sporting events. He was unable to attend Saturday due to a prior engagement.
“He’s very proud,” said Rick of his father. “Unfortunately, he couldn’t be here. He’s been such a supporter of Kyle and all the kids. A great dad, a great grandfather.”
Kyle Shaw hung around to watch both All-star games, obviously wishing he could contribute. As he glanced at the cast on his hand he simply said, “I just want to play.”

Blue sweeps all-star doubleheader with pitching, defense 

LORAIN — Pitching dominated both ends of Saturday’s annual Lorain County Baseball classic at Pipe Yard Stadium.
Blue scored only three runs on the day yet swept the lightning-quick doubleheader from Red, 1-0 and 2-1, to put the wraps on the careers of the participating county seniors. Both games were played in less than four hours. 
Vermilion’s Adam Beach was the winning team’s MVP by pitching four scoreless innings in the nightcap and scoring the winning run in each game. Beach had two hits in the opener.
“I was just out here trying to have fun,” Beach said. “Just tried not to think about anything. Zach Upton (Brookside) played real good at second (base) and the kid from Elyria (Brenton Brada) made that diving catch (in right). You can’t complain when you’re pitching and everyone else is making the plays.”
 Brada’s diving catch saved at least a double had Steve Wirth’s sinking liner got past him down the line with one out in the seventh inning of the first game.
“It was a pitchers battle,” Brada said. “Defense was pretty much the key to the game. I had no idea I was going to get to it. It’s one of those things — you just dive.”
In the sixth inning of the nightcap, Upton took a ground ball up the middle, stepped on second to retire Wellington’s Zach Suydam and fired to first to double up Elyria Catholic’s Kyle Koberna to preserve the win.
“That’s the way it’s supposed to be drawn up,” said Clearview coach Al Stacey, who managed the winning team along with Columbia’s Ed Piazza.
Southview’s Evan Nieto drove in the only run with a hit in the first game before heading to his senior prom. Brada’s infield single was the only other Blue hit in the opener. North Ridgeville’s Matt Murphy and Sean Harnish along with Midview’s Dan Brattoli and Mike Quintiliano had the only hits in the second game as Blue scored two unearned runs.
EC’s Joe Fitch drove home Red’s lone run with a sharp single to right to score Columbia’s Matt Traut.
Admiral King’s Cody Buckholtz, chosen as the MVP for Red, threw two scoreless innings and had one of Red’s hits.
Contact Tim Gebhardt at 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com.

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