MARK NANCE/Sun-Gazette correspondent Hawaii native Evan Tavares has been incredible as a pitcher this year. Throughout his entire summer run – including games in Hawaii, regionals and now the Series – he has an incredible 0.00 ERA on the mound.
What Evan Tavares did this summer really doesn’t make sense.
How do you navigate the rough pitches of Hawaii and the West Regional and the Little League World Series without allowing a single earned run? It’s not like the 12-year-old is playing as a relief pitcher.
Tavares has been the starter all summer and has extended his remarkable streak to 41 1/3 innings. What the left-hander has done is pretty staggering considering the competition Wailuku, Hawaii, has played against, but watching him throw is a realization of how he has affected dealers’ odds.
“Evan is great. As a left-hander, it’s hard when you’re young to make it look like a ball until you get a strike.” Pennsylvania manager Brad Hamilton said this after Tavares threw 5 2/3 brilliant three-hit innings in Hawaii’s 3-1 win on Tuesday afternoon. “He does a wonderful job at such a young age of playing in the corners and never really giving you a chance to land a shot, which is great at 12 years old. We knew what we were looking for, but that doesn’t make it any easier.”
Hamilton’s answer says a lot. Teams can prepare for Tavares. They can face left-handed pitchers in practice, they can know what to expect, and they can have a good plan of attack.
But when he throws like Tavares does, all the preparation in the world can feel insignificant. Combining a fastball that ranges from 45 to 70 mph with nasty off-speed pitches, Tavares can be a hitter’s nightmare. As many great teams as Hawaii has played, none have been able to solve the Tavares puzzle.
“He is such a talented pitcher,” Illinois manager Chad Wanless said this after Tavares threw 5 1/3 scoreless innings with nine strikeouts against his team in a 5-0 win. “You have to play almost flawless baseball to beat someone like that.”
Tavares is the one who has been virtually flawless this summer. Not only has Tavares not allowed a single earned run in 41 1/3 innings, but he has allowed just 15 hits and five walks and has 102 strikeouts. After dominating at the West Regional, where he had 26 strikeouts and allowed two hits in two complete games, Tavares has continued to mow down impressive teams in the Series. He has a 3-0 record, started in each Hawaii win and has five hits in 13 1/3 innings. Tavares has also recorded 28 strikeouts.
It’s a team effort, and Hawaii has a strong roster. Many pitchers have helped Hawaii become one of the top four teams in the country. Still, even manager Daniel Bolduc knows how rare a pitcher like Tavares is.
“We have a lot of pitchers on our team,” Bolduc said after Illinois’ victory. “We only have one copy of this guy.”
Illinois did its best to weaken the aura of invincibility that surrounded Tavares when it loaded all the bases in the first inning last Friday, but that only served to make Tavares angry.
And an angry Tavares is perhaps the most dangerous Tavares. He only gave up one base
runner for the rest of the way and struck out nine times.
“I got pretty angry at that moment and started throwing harder,” said Tavares. “When I get angry, I usually throw harder and hit harder. So that’s basically my thing.”
Against Illinois, Tavares showed not only his talent, but also his poise. The Mid-Atlantic champions put two runners on base in the first inning on Monday. Once again, Tavares was not intimidated.
Instead of getting frustrated, Tavares became more determined both times and ended the threats with strikeouts. He got stronger both times from there. Against Pennsylvania, Tavares retired nine batters in a row from the second through the fourth innings and at one point struck out six batters in a row.
“After the first inning I felt much more comfortable,” Tavares said on Monday. “I threw more strikes.”
Tavares said his insanity level on a scale of 1 to 10 was a seven against Pennsylvania. And that meant a potent offense from the Mid-Atlantic champions was in trouble. California, a team that overwhelmed most of its opponents this summer, felt the same frustration in the West final, when Tavares recorded 12 strikeouts and helped Hawaii win the championship, 2-1.
These are the games and moments that Tavares has worked for since the beginning of his baseball career. It is thanks to his hard work that he is able to shine in front of millions of viewers across the country.
The only thing Tavares needs to work on now is finishing his thoughts. He seems to have perfected his pitching, but Buldoc was a valuable reliever when Tavares couldn’t finish his set.
“I like moments like this because it…” said Tavares.
“It fuels his fire,” Bolduc is finished. “The bigger the moment, the better he throws.”
And few pitchers in Little League throw like Tavares.
