’Pen Pal
Last June, when the new baseball coach was announced at the University of Hawaii, the torch was officially passed from Les Murakami to Mike Trapasso. Welcome to a great
park, Coach TrapWith mixed emotions, I await the coming season. Coach Les had been Rainbow Baseball for so long, but I'm excited about the new coaches and their plans.
Rainbow baseball has been a major part of my life for 18 years, the length of time I have been with my buddy Jim Leahey in the TV booth. All of the games we've televised locally, I figure over 800 of them, have been at the current site of Rainbow Stadium.
Those that really know Rainbow baseball can go back to the old-field days, the one where the Wahine Softball Stadium now stands. Then, Rainbow Stadium was built, but I'm talking about the old Rainbow Stadium, with its metal bleachers, grass field, concession stand by the first base gate manned by family members and friends, and the people sitting under the third base bleachers with blue tarps up to protect against the wind.
In those days, when the rain came, the Rainbow team would take huge sponges, the kind from seat cushions, and soak up the wet spots on the field. If a foul ball was hit, the public address announcer enticed its return by offering free tickets to a future game.
In 1984, when the new and current Rainbow Stadium was built on the same site, we witnessed the construction of the finest college baseball stadium in the country. Every team that came here stared in awe at the marvel that was and is Rainbow Stadium.
Coach Les got it done, and frankly, I don't know of too many people that could have done it at that time, which is one of the reasons why many of us feel that the stadium should be named after him right now.
Yes, there is the five-year rule that the University has, stating that a person must be deceased for five years before a building can be named after him or her, but exceptions have been made and one should be made in this case.
The stadium needs some work done to it, because there are many areas in need of repair. I'm confident, however, that the work will get done in due time. The national status of the stadium must be preserved.
In the 18 years of television, on the original KIKU, Channel 13, on KHNL, and now on K5, Jimmy and I have seen some terrific things. We've seen some great UH teams and we've seen some mediocre ones. We've seen some great visiting teams and some brutal ones.
There have been hundreds of future Major Leaguers from the college ranks who have played at Rainbow, and hundreds of professional players. We've made some life-long friendships along the way, both from the college coaches and the Rainbow players.
Jim and I have enjoyed it all, well most of it anyway, but now we look forward to the new season, to the new Rainbow team and coaching staff. Coach Trap, this is the best place on earth, and we welcome you. Good luck to you, your staff, and players with your first official practice today at Murakami Stadium (OK, I've said it!)
Carl, Ronnie, Les, David, Tommy and all the other coaches over the years, best wishes to you. And to Coach Les, from one baseball guy to another, mahalo for the memories, and aloha no.
Pal Eldredge is a baseball commentator for KFVE
and former varsity baseball coach at Punahou School.
His column runs Mondays during the Major League Baseball season.
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