How finding joy in baseball led to NC State reliever Andrew Shaffner’s breakout campaign

Andrew Shaffner was stressed. Baseball wasn’t fun, for a moment, as he tried to be a two-way player last season. The toll of trying to excel as both a pitcher and hitter at the collegiate level was taxing, and it eventually wore him down on both sides of the game. 

Shaffner, who posted a 3.86 ERA with 23 strikeouts and just 9 walks as a freshman, saw those totals balloon to a 5.56 ERA with just 8 strikeouts and 5 walks in half the appearances during his sophomore season. At the plate, meanwhile, he was just 1 for 6 with 2 RBI. 

The 2022 Virginia Class 1 Player of the Year believed he could do it since he had excelled in both roles at Independence (Va.) Grayson County High School. He had a 0.16 ERA with 94 strikeouts, while logging a .545 batting average with 11 home runs and 39 RBI as a senior. 

But the college game was a different beast. Eventually, though, Shaffner remembered why he even played baseball. It’s a sport he grew up having a blast playing, and he wanted to find that feeling again. 

“Once I realized it’s just a game, in our childhood, we all had fun playing it,” Shaffner recalled. “Why not have fun still?”

That very thought drove Shaffner to return to the mound as a pitcher only. His high-potential aluminum bat remains sidelined in the dugout, and in turn, he has become one of NC State’s most reliable bullpen arms this spring. 

It’s a new role for Shaffner, who didn’t have a consistent schedule out of NC State’s bullpen a year ago. But his three innings of perfect relief in the Pack’s Super Regional-opening win at Georgia last June provided a glimpse of what he could provide this season. 

And so far, the change in focus has paid off. 

Shaffner, who is just two outs away from a career high in innings pitched with the Wolfpack, has posted a 3.10 ERA with 24 strikeouts and just 5 walks across 11 appearances. The right-hander has allowed 1 or fewer earned runs in nine of his 11 trips to the mound, including in each of his last five outings as he has emerged as one of NC State’s top late-inning relievers. 

“I like to think I am who I am,” said Shaffner, who has the eighth-most saves (3) in the ACC this spring. “If my name’s called, I’m ready to go. That’s all that matters to me. I don’t really care who closes a game or who starts it. I just want to win at the end of the day.”

While Shaffner has emerged as a go-to high-leverage reliever — including a 4.1-inning save with a career-best 7 strikeouts in NC State’s 9-6 win over UNC Greensboro on Tuesday night — he isn’t alone. Freshman right-hander Anderson Nance has impressed in his debut campaign with just 3 earned runs with 17 strikeouts and 5 walks across 12 innings of relief.

Pair those two with senior righty Carson Kelly, a sidewinder who has provided stability to the bullpen, and the Wolfpack’s under-the-radar relievers have been able to pick up its highly touted arms. Junior Derrick Smith, and sophomores Cooper Consiglio and Jacob Dudan — the Pack’s top relievers a year ago — have been up and down this year, but the new trio has provided a chance for those three to settle in as ACC play ramps up. 

That’s all NC State skipper Elliott Avent could ask for. 

“Shaffner has been just really, really good for us,” Avent said. “Shaffner and Nance have been outstanding. Dudan and Smith are still working some things out. … But those guys and Carson Kelly, they’ve been our best three guys out of the bullpen consistently. They’ve been great.”

Each time Shaffner emerges from the bullpen, his teammates know they’re in for a treat. For the outfielders, it usually means they’ll have a relatively quiet afternoon with him on the mound. 

“It’s exciting, especially seeing him come out of the bullpen,” junior outfielder Josh Hogue said. “We have a lot of trust in him, and he’s going to give it his all. He’s done great so far.”

But Shaffner’s rise has been one of the most crucial this season. It wasn’t anything NC State really did to his pitching mechanics. Self-belief is a powerful tool, and he appears to have found that again at the collegiate level. 

“There’s not a lot of pressure, really, I don’t think,” Shaffner said. “We’ve been doing it so long, we’ve all been playing this sport for most of our lives. Instead of being nervous, just enjoy the game. It’ll get you through everything.”

While he is a reliable bullpen option, Shaffner would be lying if he said he didn’t miss hitting. He still wants to pick up his bat during NC State’s batting practice sessions at Doak Field, but so far, his arm has done more than enough for the Pack this spring. 

And, most importantly, Shaffner is having fun in the process.