He had baseball games or practice or some combination of the two, said his mother, Anita Tirpak.

"That got hard," she said. "You are 12 years old and your friends want to do things on the weekends. But he knew his commitment to the team."

It didn't surprise the family, this love of baseball. Ty started when he was 4 years old.

"He is interested in a lot of things," his mother said. "But baseball has been what he has done this whole time. He likes reading. He likes science. He probably likes school."

Ty, the oldest of two boys, is an eighth grader at Hanalani School. His mother called him a conscientious student who often studies until 10 p.m. to keep his grades up.

"He expects that of himself," she said. "He strives for that and we are blessed."

Joanna Chai was Ty's English teacher last year and his coach for the school's intermediate volleyball team.

"He is a natural leader and I love the way he supports the other boys on the team, the way he encourages them," Chai said.

Ty is an "all-around good kid," Chai said.