A new team and new team uniforms created excitement at Vidinha Stadium when the Americans of Japanese Ancestry baseball league opened its 2009 season Sunday. “This is the 80th year that AJA baseball has been around,” said Tom Shigemoto, president
A new team and new team uniforms created excitement at Vidinha Stadium when the Americans of Japanese Ancestry baseball league opened its 2009 season Sunday.
“This is the 80th year that AJA baseball has been around,” said Tom Shigemoto, president of the Kaua‘i AJA. “Actually, they had Japanese baseball as far back as 1925, but the AJA program did not start until about 1928.”
Shigemoto was addressing a crowd of fans and players from the league’s six teams that took advantage of sunny skies and a cooling wind fanning the Vidinha baseball diamond from the northeast.
“The state AJA tournament did not start for another eight years,” Shigemoto said. “Basically, each island was having its own program with no state tournament. This year’s state AJA tournament will be its 72nd.”
Shigemoto said he discovered the history of AJA baseball in Hawai‘i while doing research following the death of one of Kaua‘i’s baseball legends.
Kapa‘a, garbed in uniforms that strongly resembled those of the Kaua‘i Emeralds, a team from the Hawai‘i Winter League Baseball program, took the field alongside the Waimea Tsunami who inaugurated the season with an earlier matchup against the Hanapepe Rivermen.
Under the direction of John Mundon, the Kapa‘a team’s pristine white-with-green uniforms took the line between thirdbase and shortstop.
The Lihu‘e Builders, playing for several seasons with a gray T-shirt emblazoned with purple lettering, unveiled its new bright blue uniforms made of baseball jersey meshing material.
Ichi Chiba, longtime AJA leader and supporter, accepted the trophy for the championship Makaweli Indians as the awards for the previous season were presented.
Ikaika Pezario copped the league’s Most Valuable Player award as well as the Batting Champion award as Makaweli took not only the championship trophy, but swept the individual awards as well.
RBI Champion honors were bestowed upon Leighton Otoman, Makaweli’s shortstop, who finished the season with 19 RBI, and following Pezario’s league-leading batting of .576, Travis Shigeta was presented the league’s Homerun Champion with three HRs recorded over the season.
Jason Miyazaki was named the league’s Rookie of the Year.
In addition to Shigemoto in the president’s slot, the Kaua‘i AJA league officers include Mamo Kaneshiro and Brian Yamase as 1st and 2nd vice presidents, respectively, Russell Maeda serving as the league’s treasurer and Earl Miyao handling the everyday operations as the League Manager.
Gerald Ako, serving as the day’s emcee, fills in the league’s Secretary position.
Roy Miyashiro, whom Shigemoto described as being “pulled out of retirement” by the league, was given special recognition for his devotion to the sport and the league and whose statistics form the basis for the league’s awards at the end of the season.
“It’s not easy work,” Shigemoto said, reflecting on the days when he spent hours following games from the scorer’s booth. “None of the positions is easy, but we do it because you like to play baseball”
Joining Mundon at the head of the new Kapa‘a team, Leroy Nonaka heads up the Hanapepe Rivermen with Peter Ishibashi taking charge of the Kalaheo Kaneshiro Farms squad that was still awaiting delivery of its new team shirts.
Dean Ichimasa heads up the Lihu‘e Builders and Bruce Hiraoka is at the helm of the Waimea Tsunami.
Mel Nishihara leads the Kaua‘i AJA champion Makaweli Indians.
There is no charge for the public to view the competition that will take place each Sunday at both Vidinha Stadium and the Hanapepe Stadium.
