by Manny Henriques - TGI Baseball Writer
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How does one measure the amount of “heart” first round title-holder Kapa’a displayed in Wednesdays 16-13 slugfest at Hanapepe Ball Park?

With the KIF baseball season at its halfway mark, enthused fans not only continue to remark on the Warrior’s offensive explosion in the first half title game, but also of the remarkable resurgence of the Menehunes after losing their initial three contests of the season.

There is also buzz about how close the Red Raiders were (only three unearned runs away) from claiming the first round without benefit of a play-off.

Parity has found its way to our local prep diamonds and local baseball pundits are thrilled.

Six contests have been decided by two runs or less and getting on the scoreboard first has proven more unlucky than not as teams that initially plated runs eventually lost seven of eleven ball games.

Hitting:

– Kapa’a: Kaili Panui leads the KIF with 2 homers and 9 RBIs in addition to carrying a team-high .429 batting average. Jared Raquel and (Waimea’s) Clarence Aki share a league-high 10 hits each. Keoni Nakano has the unfortunate distinction of having been hit by pitches a KIF-leading 4 times. Tyler Wakuta (with 4 RBIs in yesterdays match-up) and brother Brad have driven in 12 runs collectively while Kyle Neuberger has displayed a talent for hitting (3 singles, 1 double, 1 triple, 1 home run) in addition to pitching responsibilities. Reserve Kawai Kupihea (.333) has a hit, sacrifice and a stolen base in his only start to help defeat the Raiders at home to force the first round play-off and outfielder Rayton Bonilla has found his way aboard at a .500 clip.

– Kaua’i: 2001 KIF all-star Scott Serizawa is among the leagues hottest batsmen. After going 0-9 to begin this year’s action, the Raider shortstop has been on a 9-15 tear (his 2 triples lead the KIF along with team-mate Alec Reichle) to grab a team-high .474 average. Rodney Baptiste (.400) has knocked a league leading 3 doubles and shares the team lead for RBIs with Reichle (6). Kaua’i has five players presently hitting at a .300 pace: Garen Itamura has hit safely in 7 of 20 at-bats (.350); Kirby Yates is at .333 (1-3) in a limited role; Reichle (.313) has proven to be an invaluable commodity in the field as well as at the plate; and Titus Hori and Casey Oketani (with the squads sole home run) are at .300. Alaric Villatora leads the KIF with 6 stolen bases in as many attempts.

– Waimea: It’s no surprise that recent success has coincided with the insertion of Michael Ishibashi into the starting lineup. The Menehune second baseman has been on a tear with 7 hits (including 2 triples and a home run) for a league-leading .636 batting average, .688 on base percentage and an astronomical 1.273 slugging percentage in 4 games. Clarence Aki carries a .370 average and a team leading 6 RBIs and KIF-high 9 runs scored into the second half. Other hitters over .300 include Shawn Yadao (.333) and Brandon Ishibashi (who started the season off on a tear and now sports a .318 average). Infielder Leonard Zalopany has a monstrous home run and 4 RBIs (for a first round total of 8) to give the Menehunes a short-lived 9-7 lead in yesterdays title clash. Jay Parinas has only 2 singles but a whopping 13 walks for a .600 on-base percentage to shore up the bottom of the order.

Pitching:

– Kapa’a: 6 3″ junior right-hander Kyle Neuberger has emerged as the Warriors go-to guy with a 3-1 record and 4.90 ERA and has the only complete game on the staff. Lefty Kai Lopez (who was called upon to start yesterdays first round final) has allowed 23 hits and 13 walks in 16-2/3 innings but has the KIFs best pick-off move to first to keep runners from taking full advantage. Tyler Wakuta has excelled in short relief stints and picked up the critical save in Wednesdays first round title game. Senior J.J. Ancheta and Raquel have also seen action on the hill.

Kauai: Reichle (2-1) leads the leagues starters with an outstanding 0.93 ERA, but has walked 20 batters in 15 innings of work. Reichle is tied with Waimea’s Buddy Taniguchi with a league leading 17 strikeouts. Sophomore hurler Jake Oketani (1.47 ERA) has deserved much better than his 1-2 record shows; only 4 of his 12 runs allowed have been earned. Third starter Baptiste has pitched well in spots but has no decisions to his credit. The Raider pitching future bodes well with freshman hurlers Kirby Yates and Kekoa Crowell combined ERA of 0.00 in 2-2/3 innings of work.

Waimea: Taniguchi has assumed the bulk of starting assignments (a league leading 28-1/3 innings pitched), winning 2 of 5 starts (including two no-decisions) with a 2.72 ERA. In addition to infield duties at short, Clarence Aki has filled the role of #2 starter and primary reliever very capably with a 2-2 record and 3.60 ERA; he has given up 16 hits in 23-1/3 innings on the hill. Shawn Yadao has seen his only action in a brief (2/3 inning) stint to close out a 7-4 loss to the Warriors. Ray Shirai struck out 2 batters in 1-2/3 innings worked yesterday in first action of the season.

Fielding::

Despite the fact that there have been some incredible plays to end scoring threats, all three coaches can agree that defensive consistency is the one area that needs the most improvement if their squads are to contend in the second half. Each teams starting catchers however, have been very active behind the plate in limiting potential runs.

2nd round outlook:

With preseason opportunities to scout tendencies and now having at least three chances to face their opposition, KIF batters have definitely caught up to early pitching success. The Warriors may have a slight advantage with four contests at Ron Martin Field, but if the wind is blowing out to left, anything can happen. The return of Moses Punzal from the injured list will help pitching coach Gary Gatiuan to sleep better at night.

As first year Raider Head Coach Kevin Medeiros and his staff become more familiar with their wealth of talent and as vital cog Alec Reichle recovers from the flu bug look for the Raiders to have further success.

The prideful Menehunes have blossomed with extra instruction in the batting cage and if that trend continues Taniguchi and Aki will continue to pick up victories. The 30-out per week pitching limit imposed to save young arms from overuse will come into play this weekend as the Menehunes and Raiders had extra games due to the first round play-offs and will have to utilize fresh hurlers.

All in all, fans will be treated to another excitement-filled cycle as teams battle to represent the Garden Island in HHSAA State Baseball Tournament competition at Oahus Les Murakami Field from May 15-18.