Wednesday, March 10, 1999

Hawaii Pacific pitcher
found perfection with
scout’s help

By Jerry Campany
Special to the Star-Bulletin

For Ryan Evans, the difference between perfection and mediocrity was about two inches.

Evans, 22, put a scout's suggestion to the test and threw a perfect game for Hawaii Pacific in an 18-0 rout of Christian Brothers University on Monday.

Immediately after Evans' last start, a lackluster game that HPU won 9-5 over San Francisco on Feb. 13, Hawaii Pacific head coach Allan Sato struck up his usual post-game conversation with the assembled scouts attending to see San Francisco. An Atlanta Braves scout happened to be in attendance, and Sato steered their conversation toward his starting pitcher. It turned out to be a valuable lesson for Evans.

"He said that I have an arm speed that can't be taught," Evans said. "He also suggested that I move my pivot foot parallel to the rubber, and that he would follow my progress after that."

If the scout is indeed watching, he has to be pleased. Sato moved Evans' big toe two inches from where he had been placing it, and the subtle change made a world of difference.

"Deric Yanagisawa called a great game, he gives each of our pitchers a chance at perfection," Sato said. "But that one simple adjustment made the difference for Evans, it was the one key thing he was missing."

Before his perfect game, Evans was erratic and struggled to hit Yanagisawa's glove consistently, but he was able to fight his way through his troubles. Against the Buccaneers, it seemed as though Evans had something to prove, but at 5-foot-10, Evans has always felt that he had to work harder than everyone else just to prove that he belonged.

"I am constantly trying to prove myself because I am so small," Evans said. "but I make up for it with my competitive nature. It doesn't matter if I am out back pitching horseshoes or pitching a ballgame, I want to win."

Evans had been in perfect game territory before, throwing eight innings of perfect ball in high school before a bleeder through the infield ended his first no-hit bid. But familiarity does not make the road any easier.

With his teammates wrapped up in their 18-run explosion and not aware of his accomplishment until after the final out, Evans started thinking about the possibilities in the fifth inning of the seven inning contest. Baseball is as mental as it is physical, and Evans had the mental aspect under control, as he always does.

I was nervous, but I used it to my advantage," Evans said. "If you don't have that mental power, you don't succeed. Being nervous is a good thing, as long as you keep it positive. I don't let things get me down."