Opening weekend was not exactly what Arizona baseball catcher Dwight Childs anticipated. The junior started only game 1 of the Wildcats 2-1 series victory over Sacramento State before being benched for junior Daniel Butler, who went 5-for-8 at the plate with an RBI and a slugging percentage of .750.
So when UA head coach Andy Lopez gave Childs the nod Tuesday night when Arizona (3-1) went up against UNLV (3-2), the veteran catcher was determined to not repeat his 0-for-4 performance at the plate.
Childs lived up to expectations Tuesday night as he went 2-for-5, belting a double and a home run – the second of his career – to tally a team-high three RBIs in a 14-7 Arizona win over the Running Rebels.
The Arizona catcher – known for his impeccable defense – said he spent the offseason working on his hitting. He added around 30 pounds to his tall frame in hopes the extra mass would pay off in power.
The evidence may have appeared Tuesday night.
“”It was a good bounce back effort and he did well in every aspect of the game,”” Lopez said. “”He did a really good job of calling the game and just his overall catching. He’s a junior so he knows what the expectations are and he showed that with his great night tonight.””
Childs was not the only Wildcat to shine in Las Vegas, as Arizona saw six players contribute RBIs while each player to come to the plate recorded at least one hit.
Arizona jumped on Rebel’s starter Glenn DeWeese in the second inning using extra-base hits from the first four batters to chase the UNLV junior from the game and eventually throw a seven-spot up onto the scoreboard.
Starting pitcher Kyle Simon (0-0) looked strong through 3 1/3 innings before getting into trouble in the fourth inning and allowing six earned runs over his final complete inning of work.
But despite Arizona’s potent offense, the freshman came up just short of picking up his first career win as a Wildcat.
“”Overall, I think he pitched well for his first start as a freshman,”” Lopez said. “”He kind of hit a wall there in the fifth inning and maybe got a little tired but through those first four innings he gave us a good start.””
Arizona plays the second of the two-game series today at noon. Right-hander Donn Roach (1-0) is expected to start his second game of the season for the UA after an impressing outing Sunday in which the freshman pitched six innings giving up no earned runs and striking out seven en route to his first collegiate win.
“”We’ll give (Roach) the start – about a 40-45 pitch count,”” Lopez said. “”But then we’ll start running some guys out there in a staff-type situation.
“”We played pretty well (Tuesday night),”” Lopez added, “”and will try to carry that onto (today).””
