Friday, July 24, 1998
Ten years ago, Pearl City
By Cindy Luis and Dave Reardon
made a gutsy run in the
Little League World Series
Star-BulletinTEN years ago, they had their 15 minutes of fame. They were only 11 and 12 years old.
And the irony is, they didn't even realize what they were accomplishing.
They were just a bunch of kids doing what came naturally -- playing baseball and having fun doing it. Becoming national champions was just the ice cream in the shave ice.
"Mostly everybody didn't know how big it was when we went up there," Reid Numata said. "Only after we came back it started to kick in. 'You guys went this far, and nobody else from Hawaii ever did before.' "
'This far' was the championship game of the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa. Others teams from Hawaii have made it to the doorstep of youth baseball nirvana, but no other local team won the national title and played for the world championship.
None had played in front of 38,000 people and on national television, either.
"Thinking about winning the championship never crossed our minds," said Merv Yoshimoto, the team's manager. "The kids took it day by day, game by game. Win or lose, they were always the same.
"It was a small team, the other teams were all bigger than us. But this team had discipline. They played together as a team."
The little guys from Hawaii weren't intimidated by the cameras and the attention. But their Taiwanese opponents were bigger, stronger, and yes, better.
After scratching their way to the national crown by barely beating teams from Spring, Texas, and Tulsa, Okla., that looked stronger on paper, the Pearl Citians found themselves in the final against Tai Chung of Taiwan, trying to hit BBs dispensed by the right arm of Yu Chenlung, one in a long line of Taiwanese twirlers to dominate U.S. batters."They were big and the pitcher was throwing really hard," said Jason Adaro, one of two 11-year-olds on the team. "I guess we were intimidated the whole game. I only hit a couple foul balls."
And when they were in the field, the Hawaii boys were trying to chase down shots from the aluminum bat of Chen Wei Chih, who went 4-for-4 with a three-run homer and four RBIs.
Hawaii lost, 10-0. Its only hit was a little chopper by Chris Yoshimoto, the manager's son, in the first inning.
"Looking back on it, I'm proud of that accomplishment of getting the only hit considering how fast he was throwing," Yoshimoto said. "They clocked him at 78 miles per hour (at 46 feet, that's the equivalent of 98 mph at the major league level)."
One of the few bright spots was a defensive gem by right fielder Adaro. He drifted back to catch a long drive off the bat of Yu in the second inning.
"People say it was a diving catch," Adaro recalled. "I think it was more like a fall. The ball was over my head. I just caught it and fell down."
And he got up.
Adaro fired a perfect relay to second baseman Numata, who tagged out Chen Hsin-Cheng trying to score from second.
But Pearl City couldn't use the play as a rallying point, as it had used its defensive skills in earlier series and regional play.
Revenge of sorts came three years later in the Little League Senior Majors World Series, when a team with nine players from the same Pearl City group beat a Taiwan squad, also with nine players from 1988, 4-3, in 1991. Taiwan came back out of the loser's bracket to beat Pearl City for the title, 2-1 and 8-3.
Beating Taiwan was sweet for the Hawaii boys. But winning was never a big deal for them. It was the experience of playing together and playing the game the right way -- with skill and expertise, but for fun. And most of all, hanging out with the guys.
"The friendship on the team was so strong," outfielder Skye Nakagawa said. "When I look back now and see the team we had and the teams we played against, it's hard to believe we won. Small guys like us played against the big guys. I guess we were pretty lucky. We had a lot of fun. No one got down on each other, even when we were losing. When you think about it, it's pretty unreal. We didn't try to win. We just wanted to go out and have fun."
They also enjoyed the company of kids from around the country and the world.
"The best part was just being around the other kids, meeting new people," shortstop Jerel Lee said.
Adaro, who also played for the Aiea American Legion World Series champions in 1994, said the most fun he had at Williamsport had nothing to do with baseball.
"They had these big grass hills, and they sold cardboard so you could slide down," he said. "That was fun. It was way bigger than the hills at Kakaako Park. Cruising with the guys, my teammates."
It was that special bond -- and the team's trademark ability to avoid mistakes on the field -- that kept the Pearl City team together.
How else could a team win its regional championship -- 1-0 against a strong Arizona entry -- without getting a hit?
"I don't know what happened to our hitting," Lee said. "As soon as we got to the mainland, the bats went down."
"Regardless of whether we won or lost, people always told us that the way the kids presented themselves was as winners, good kids who were always good sports," said Richard Numata, the team manager in 1988.
"Against Taiwan, we just wanted to keep the score as close as possible," said Merv Yoshimoto, who retired from coaching in 1989, but for the past 10 years served on the Pearl City Little League board. "We didn't want to be embarrassed. Compared to what happened to the California team the year before (Taiwan won, 21-1), our score was pretty close.
"We got down early against Taiwan (7-0 after four innings). I told the boys to go out and do the best you can, not embarrass Hawaii or the U.S. Part of our concern was making sure everybody got in to play. They never showed any kind of disappointment. I think the boys represented the United States very well."
Jason Adaro ’88 Pearl City roster
Kealii Akana
Kevin Bagoyo
Jerel Lee
Chad Miyake
Ryan Morioka
Skye Nakagawa
Kendrick Noda
Reid Numata
Garrett Seto
Derek Yamamoto
Guy Yoshida
Chris Yoshimoto
M anager: Merv Yoshimoto
Coach: Richard Numata
The Boys of Summer 10 years past remain close, although some have moved away. But now they are young adults, 21 and 22 years old.
There wasn't a big-league prospect among the national champion of 1988. Only a few went on to play collegiately: Lee at Oregon State; and Chad Miyake, Kendrick Noda and Guy Yoshida at Hawaii Pacific.
Many don't play baseball anymore. Adaro is one who does. The former all-state third baseman plays in the Oahu Summer League.
"He's picked up a few pounds, but he still loves the game," said Dale Adaro, Jason's father.
And that's all Little League asks of its alumni -- whether they're national champions or winless.
"When you start a (Little League) season, you never think about going to Williamsport," Merv Yoshimoto said. "It's everybody's dream to get there and I hope everyone can experience something like that in their lifetime. We were just very fortunate and had a lot of luck on our side.
"When we were leaving Williamsport, the 'Uncle' (host) who took us to the airport told me, 'Merv, you don't realize what you guys just accomplished up here. You won't realize it until maybe five years from now how big this was.'
"Some of these kids ended up playing in four World Series. Their attitude never changed. They're still good boys. Even today, they're still little kids."
The state Little League Tournament opened this afternoon -- at the home field of the last Hawaii team to make it to Williamsport.
"We had our time as 12-year-olds," Chris Yoshimoto said.
Seven Hawaii teams have advanced to the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa. Only one -- Pearl City in 1988 -- made it to the championship game. Hawaii Little League
World Series entrantsHawaii began a four-year run in 1958, competing as the Pacific representative in the International bracket. In 1962, the Pacific region became the Far East region and Hawaii began competing in the U.S. West region.
A look at Hawaii teams that advanced to the world series:
1958: Pearl Harbor. In the seven-team tournament, Hawaii had a bye then lost to eventual World Series champion Latin America, 11-0.
The majority of the team stayed together for the next three years, advancing to the Little League World Series for Juniors (age 13), Seniors (ages 13-15) and Big League (14-15). It is a feat that earned Pearl City a spot in the Little League Hall of Fame. Hawaii faced Taiwan in the final game all four years, winning once -- in 1991, 2-1.
Star-Bulletin staff
