[ HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETICS ]
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Loaded Weapons Taken separately, Tyler Perkins and Keoni Ruth can set off a few fireworks on the baseball field on their own.
Perkins and Ruth work together
to put opposing pitchers in tough spotsBy Jason Kaneshiro
jkaneshiro@starbulletin.comPut them together and it's the Fourth of July.
Perkins and Ruth provide the offensive spark for Interscholastic League of Honolulu champion Kamehameha, the top-seeded team in this week's state tournament.
Perkins, the Warriors' lead-off batter and center fielder, is perhaps the fastest player in the state, while Ruth has emerged as one of the team's top run producers batting in the second spot.
"A lot of the games when we scored a lot of runs, they set the tone early," Kamehameha coach Vern Ramie said.
As he has for the past four seasons, Ramie will pen Perkins' name atop the Warriors' lineup card when they face the winner of today's contest between Waianae and Kapaa in a state quarterfinal game at 7 tomorrow night at Les Murakami Stadium.
Perkins, the nephew of former University of Hawaii infielder Kimo Perkins, joined the varsity as a freshman and broke into the starting lineup that season.
His production quelled concerns about his inexperience, and surprised everyone but himself.
"The one thing that will always stand out in my mind about Tyler is his confidence in himself," Ramie said. "A lot of people think, 'Wow, a freshman starting,' but there was no doubt in his mind that he belonged there. It would have been a big disappointment for him if he wasn't there."
Perkins, now a senior, is one of the state's most feared baserunners and demands constant attention from pitchers and catchers once he gets on first.
"I've noticed Mid-Pac and Iolani tend to pitch out a lot in counts that they think I'd probably steal on," Perkins said. "It does make it more difficult to steal, but it intrigues me more. It makes it more fun and makes me want to go."
Ruth, a junior, is in his second varsity season and was thrust into the spotlight last year when starting shortstop Bronson Sardinha was sidelined with an injury. Ruth took over at shortstop in the preseason and performed admirably in place of the eventual first-round draft pick of the New York Yankees.
"It got to the point where we wondered if we really wanted to move him back to second," Ramie recalled.
Ruth stepped into the shortstop role full-time this season and quickly learned that hitting behind Perkins has its perks.
"When he gets on, because they're worried about him stealing, they don't want to give me any off-speed stuff, so I just go up there looking for fastballs," Ruth said.
Ruth, in turn, will give Perkins every opportunity to get to second on his own by laying off a few pitches early in the count.
"He's become a patient hitter and he's a more confident hitter," Ramie said. "So he's not afraid to get deep into the count and take two strikes and give Tyler a chance to run."
Perkins and Ruth have also worked out their own code to let each other know what they're planning on the bases and at the plate.
"Even before I go up we might talk about what we're going to do if I get on or if I'm on second," Perkins said. "If he walks me, I'll tell Keoni that I'm probably going to go or he'll tell me he'll take a few pitches. When I'm on second, I'll give him a signal to let him know if I'm going to go so he can crowd the plate and give me a better chance."
Although Perkins has a green light whenever he gets on base, he's learned he can often help the team by staying put.
"A lot of times he's on first base and he likes to stay there to give Shannon (Kahale) a couple of pitches to hit with someone holding him on to leave the hole there," Ramie said. "It's just part of being an unselfish player."
Perkins' ability to get himself into scoring position helped Ruth rank among the team leaders in RBIs this season despite hitting in the second spot, in front of the team's power core of Kahale, Kahe Santos, Nick Freitas and Zach McAngus.
"We couldn't ask any more out of him," Ramie said. "He's been the most consistent guy for us this year. He's hit the ball hard all season."
Perkins is a two-time Star-Bulletin all-state outfielder and made the all-state football team in the fall as a free safety. He ran in last week's state track and field meet, only the second meet he entered this spring, and finished second to St. Louis' Jason Rivers by four-hundredths of a second in the 100-meter dash.
"That was my own fault," Perkins said. "I got out so well I thought I had it. I didn't hear anyone around me until the last three steps to the finish line and that's when he came up on me."
Ruth was among the football team's leading receivers and left an impression on Perkins in practice.
"He's a receiver, but he likes to hit," Perkins said. "He's got some moves, but he comes at you and brings it hard. ... We go up against each other once in a while and he got his shots and I got mine."
Perkins is close to signing with the University of Portland to play baseball and has his eye on Major League Baseball's first-year player draft in early June.
But he also carries memories of Kamehameha's last state tournament appearance two years ago, when the Warriors let a seven-run lead slip away in a loss to Molokai in the championship game.
"You can't stop playing hard, not for a single out," he said. "You can't ever let up at all. The game turns so quickly and momentum shifts just kill you."
This week, Ruth and Perkins know it's their job to light the fuse for the Warriors and hope to emerge as state champions when the smoke settles.
"Last year we were loaded, but we didn't make it," Ruth said. "This year we knew we didn't have as many stars, but if we concentrate one game at a time and play as a team we could get here."
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