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THE ASTORIAN • TuESdAy, JuNE 4, 2019
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LA PINE BEATS WARRENTON IN TITLE GAME
Hawks’ pitcher brings the
heat in complete-game win
By GARY HENLEY
The Astorian
K
EIZER — The Warrenton Warriors
went all-out to commemorate the
25th anniversary of their 1994 state
championship season.
The celebration even included an actual
re-enactment of their drive to the state title
game.
Unfortunately for the Warriors, the cli-
mactic scene did not turn out the same as
did in ‘94.
La Pine scored four runs in the bottom
of the second inning, then let pitcher Adam
Plant do the rest in Friday night’s Class 3A
baseball state championship game at Volca-
noes Stadium in Keizer, where the Hawks
celebrated an 8-1 win over the Warriors.
La Pine’s junior right-hander scattered
seven hits, struck out nine and walked just
one for a complete-game victory. Plant
threw 105 pitches on the 80-degree night in
Keizer, outdueling Warrenton pitcher Dal-
ton Knight.
The Warriors’ senior left-hander also
gave up seven hits, but walked four and hit
one batter, while the Warrior defense com-
mitted five errors, three in the decisive sec-
ond inning.
Warrenton coach Lennie Wolfe didn’t
make excuses for his ball club.
“We just ran out of juice,” he said. “In
previous games, we were so solid defen-
sively, and whenever we needed the big
hit or the big inning offensively, we’d get
it. Today we were never able to put the hits
together. It just didn’t happen.
“A big part of it was Plant,” he said. “He
was really tough on the hill, and they were
very sound defensively. They made the
plays.”
And at the plate, the Hawks “came
through with men on base.”
Like in the second inning, when the
Hawks jumped on the scoreboard with four
runs.
La Pine loaded the bases with no outs,
and after sophomore Isaac Bright was hit by
a pitch to force in the first run, Plant deliv-
ered a two-run single to shallow right field
for a 3-0 lead. Another run scored on War-
renton’s third error of the inning.
La Pine tacked on two runs in the bottom
of the third, before the Warriors scored their
lone run in the fourth.
Jacob Morrow had a leadoff double, then
sprinted home moments later on an infield
error on a ground ball from Duane Falls.
There would be more highlights for
the Warriors, including a one-out double
for Morrow in the sixth inning. The junior
catcher was named by the OSAA as War-
renton’s Player of the Game.
There were, however, no more runs for
the Warriors.
Morrow was stranded at third in the
sixth, and Warrenton came up empty in the
seventh, despite loading the bases with one
out.
Alec Herrera had a leadoff double,
Kale’o Kapua reached on an infield pop
fly, and freshman Ethan Caldwell slapped a
one-out hit to center.
But after a few discussions on the
Photos by Colin Murphey/The Astorian
Dalton Knight delivers a pitch to the plate for the Warrenton Warriors.
Jacob Morrow makes it safely back to first base during a pickoff attempt.
mound, Plant remained in the game and
retired the next two batters to set off a big
celebration for the Hawks, now back-to-
back champions of 3A baseball.
“Mentally, we were not on point,” Mor-
row said. “Out of the whole entire tourna-
ment, this was the biggest game where we
lacked the mental focus.
“From playing Burns, then going to
Brookings and Santiam … in the beginning
of those games, they were trying to catch up
to us.”
Against La Pine, he said, “we were just a
little bit behind in the mental focus. We had
five errors.
“It was a really big loss,” Morrow added,
“and it’s definitely going to sting for awhile,
but there’s a lot of things that we can take
from it. It’s going to make us better for next
year. We’ll be more familiar with every-
thing. The whole experience was good, and
we deserved to be there — that’s what we
got out of it. We earned it, and deserved to
be in that spot.”
Warrenton’s latest cast of characters —
which, two years ago was just 1-17 over-
all — may not have seen the last of Vol-
canoes Stadium, as the Warriors lose only
four seniors, and just two starters, Kapua
and Knight.
In fact, this year’s top contenders at the
3A level may also be the top contenders in
2020.
“Santiam Christian loses two starters,
La Pine only loses two starters, and we lose
two starters,” Wolfe said. “So I wouldn’t be
shocked to see all of us back and contend-
ing again next year.”
One part of the play that hasn’t changed
since 1994 — the director is still the same.
Wolfe has been the coach for all four
Warrenton championship game appear-
ances (1993, ‘94, ‘98, 2019). After arriving
at Warrenton in 1992, the coach with over
500 career wins took the Warriors to two
championship games in his first three years,
before Warrenton’s third trip to the finals in
1998.
Many of the ex-Warriors players from
those teams were in attendance Friday,
along with a good percentage of the War-
renton population.
And, like the sea of purple in the stands
Friday at Volcanoes Stadium, the near-fu-
ture of Oregon 3A baseball looks very pur-
ple. Warrenton purple.
“We’ll meet Monday and talk about the
summer and going forward, but we’ll also
look back at how significant this was,”
Wolfe said. “To go from 1-17 in 2017,
to where are now … we wouldn’t have
expected to end up where we did.”
Said Morrow, “We will definitely have
our times next year when we miss Dalton
and Kale’o, but we have enough to come
back and make a punch again. Dalton and
Kale’o were our anchors, because they
were there from Day 1. We will have to fin-
ish it for them.”
Bruce traded from Mariners to Phillies 2018 champ Beavers knocked
By JOLENE LATIMER
Associated Press
LOS ANGELES — Jay Bruce
is going from last place to the NL
East-leading Philadelphia Phillies.
The former All-Star was traded
by the Seattle Mariners on Sunday
in a deal that will cost the Phillies
just $2.75 million over the next 1½
seasons.
“I get to go somewhere I have
a chance to win,” the 32-year-old
outfielder said, “and at this point in
my career, that’s pretty paramount
for me.”
As part of the deal, Seattle agreed
to pay the Phillies $18,567,204
next Jan. 15, offsetting most of the
$21,317,204 remaining in the $39
million, three-year contract Bruce
agreed to with the New York Mets
in January 2018.
Bruce is owed $8,317,204 this
year from his $13 million salary
and has a $13 million salary in
2020. The Mets remain responsible
for the second $1.5 million install-
ment of his $3 million signing
bonus, a payment due next Jan. 31.
Philadelphia sent the Mari-
ners minor league infielder Jake
Scheiner, who will report to Class
A Modesto.
Bruce is hitting .212 with 14
homers and 28 RBIs, striking out
AP Photo/Ted S. Warren
Jay Bruce reacts after flying out
against the Texas Rangers.
53 times in 184 at-bats.
“It’s bittersweet,” he said. “I
really like the group of guys here. I
got to know some of them and had
great relationships. It’s part of the
business, though.”
Phillies first baseman Rhys
Hoskins welcomed news of the
trade.
“Obviously that’s an exciting
move, another veteran guy, a guy
who’s done it in some big situa-
tions in the playoffs, another left-
handed guy, a guy who knows the
game,” he said. “Comfortable in
a ton of different roles and from
everything I’ve heard he’s a great
dude. My guess is he’ll fit right in
here.”
A three-time All-Star for Cin-
cinnati in 2011, ‘12 and ‘16, Bruce
was acquired by the Mets from the
Reds on Aug. 1, 2016, traded to
Cleveland on Aug. 9, 2017, then
became a free agent and returned
to the Mets.
He hit just .223 with nine hom-
ers and 37 RBIs in 94 games last
year, when he was sidelined from
mid-June until late August because
of a sore right hip. New York
traded him to Seattle in Decem-
ber as part of the deal in which the
salary-shedding Mariners sent sec-
ond baseman Robinson Canò and
closer Edwin Díaz to the Mets.
Now, Bruce returns to the
National League.
“We believe he’ll be able to
operate in either corner,” Phil-
lies general manager Matt Klen-
tak said. “I know he hasn’t played
a ton of first base in his career, but
we think for a short period he’d be
fine over there, too.”
Bruce’s last hit with Seattle was
memorable, his 300th home run
on Friday, against the Los Angeles
Angels. He is one of eight active
players with at least 300 home runs
and 300 doubles.
Seattle recalled outfielder Bra-
den Bishop from Triple-A Tacoma.
The 23-year-old Scheiner, a
fourth-round pick in the 2017 ama-
teur draft, hit .256 with two homers
and 20 RBIs at Class A Clearwater.
from the NCAA Tournament
Associated Press
Defending national cham-
pion Oregon State was among
the first teams eliminated from
the NCAA Tournament
on Saturday, mark-
ing the first time the
Beavers have gone
0-2 in regionals in 14
appearances since 1985.
The Beavers’ 4-1
loss to Big East champion
Creighton, which followed a 7-6
loss to American Athletic Con-
ference champ Cincinnati on
Friday, knocked them out in the
regional round for the first time
since 2015.
Baylor’s Shea Langeliers
turned in one of the greatest indi-
vidual postseason performances,
hitting three home runs and dou-
bling while going 5 for 6 and
driving in a tournament-record
11 runs in the Bears’ 24-6 win
over Omaha in an elimina-
tion game.
The game was
catcher
Adley
Rutschman’s last
for Oregon State.
Rutschman is pro-
jected to be the No. 1
pick in the Major League Base-
ball draft. He was on deck
when the Bluejays turned the
game-ending double play. He
had driven a ball to the warning
track in his last at-bat and tipped
his cap to the crowd as he jogged
back to the dugout.
SCOREBOARD
BASEBALL
3A state championship
La Pine 8, Warrenton 1
Warrenton 000 100 0—1 7 5
La Pine 042 020 x—8 7 2
Dalton Knight and Jacob Morrow; Adam Plant
and Alex Farnsworth. W: Plant. L: Knight. RBI:
LaP, Bright 3, DeForest 2, Plant 2. 2B: War, Mor-
row 2, Herrera. HBP: LaP, Bright. LOB: Warren-
ton 7, La Pine 6. Umpires: HP-John Shinoskie.
1B-Steven Stahr. 3B-Mike Gibson. OSAA Play-
ers of the Game: Warrenton-Jacob Morrow; La
Pine-Adam Plant.
OSAA state championships
BASEBALL
4A: Banks 3, Henley 1
3A: La Pine 8, Warrenton 1
2A/1A: Umpqua Valley Christian 10, Kennedy 5
SOFTBALL
4A: La Grande 4, Henley 2
3A: Clatskanie 10, Dayton 5
2A/1A: North Douglas 15, Kennedy 6