Pearl City Rookies Hit It Big
By Jack Danilewicz
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Del.icio.usPearl City baseball coach Gary Nakamoto knew familiar names would highlight his roster in 2010 after a youthful team won a third straight OIA title last May, but it’s relative newcomers - seniors Austin Bali and Reid Ramos - have had break-through seasons and are big reasons why Pearl City was in the mix for another OIA title over the weekend at the conference tournament.
“We expect a lot from guys like Kahana Neal and Jordan Oshiro, but those two (Bali and Ramos) turned around our season for us,” Nakamoto said, noting that neither of them played baseball as juniors.“I knew in the off-season (they would contribute) with our weight training. You could see the determination in Reid. He worked really hard. It’s the same with Austin. They both have different attitudes this year, and it’s showed on the field.”
Both players have the numbers to show for their diligence. Ramos, a starting second baseman and sometime designated hitter, is batting .459 in the No. 7 spot in the lineup.
“He’s getting all of the timely hits,” Nakamoto said. “He was down a little early in preseason when he wasn’t starting. We talked about it, and when I started him, he did all right. I’m very pleased with what they’ve both been doing.
“Austin’s been a big surprise,” he added of Bali, who is hitting .545 with a team-leading 18 RBI and a pair of home runs. “He’s only 5-6 or 5-7, but he’s crushing the ball. He hits the ball hard.”
A left-fielder, Bali is hitting in the No. 5 position. Lead-off hitter Oshiro sets the pace offensively with a .515 average heading into last weekend. Offensive will be a hot topic all week as the team prepares for the state tournament. It has been a year-long theme, according to the coach. “We have to put the ball in play - last year, we struggled at the end.”
Nakamoto has coached Pearl City to wins in 29 of their last 31 games, dating back to March of 2009. “We’ve been doing it, so I’m not worried. We still have room for improvement. Certain boys haven’t been playing as expected, so if they come up, we’ll be more solid.”
A first-class preseason schedule gave them a good measurement of the rest of the 2010 competition. By their first OIA game in March, they already had already faced Saint Louis, Kamehameha, Iolani and Maui-power Baldwin. ( Pearl City won those games, except for a tie with Iolani.) Those teams could all be in the mix with the Chargers next week on Maui at the state baseball tournament, but the team Nakamoto is most preoccupied with is his own.
Like the rest of his OIA peers, he and Pearl City were exhaling after quarter-final wins last Thursday, which earned them a spot in the OIA tournament semi-finals and guaranteed the Chargers a state tournament berth.
From the perspective of matchups, Pearl City is an especially dangerous team with its pitching depth. Eight different Chargers - Kahana Neal, Royce Murai, Kawika Pruitt, Ed Izumigawa, Isaac Shim, Tyler Tokunaga, Chevas Numata and closer Chase Numata, who is the team’s leader at shortstop - can step in at any time.
“I’m very pleased with what we have as far as pitching,” Nakamoto said.“Some of these guys were starters as sophomores and juniors. That’s a real plus.”
Pairings for the state tournament will be revealed Sunday, and Nakamoto said he’ll likely go with Neal to start the first game next Wednesday or Thursday. Neal started in last Thursday’s win over Moanalua, the game that clinched them the state tournament berth.
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