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Jerry Campany: Numbers show that this prep baseball team is best ever
TL;DR
The Wally Yonamine State Baseball Tournament begins next week in Hawaii, with two teams set to be crowned champions. Historical context highlights the unpredictability of the tournament, where unseeded teams often triumph.
Key points
- Wally Yonamine State Baseball Tournament starts next week
- Two teams will be crowned champions in Hawaii
- 66 champions have been crowned in the tournament's history
- Unpredictability is a hallmark of the tournament
- Star power is less significant in determining winners
Officially, two teams will be crowned the baseball champions of the state of Hawaii next week.
Unofficially, the holder of the Cartwright Cup goes to the survivors of a state of anarchy.
Beginning next Thursday at Hans LâOrange Park, the 65th edition of the Wally Yonamine State Baseball Tournament will begin. The tournaments began before statehood but took two years off during the pandemic. There have been 66 champions crowned, with Baldwin and Maui sharing the title two years ago because there was water falling from the sky.
This isnât swimming, where schools hit the pool ready to bow down to the Buffanblu. It isnât football, where neighbor island schools are not invited to compete for the biggest prize. This is baseball, a genteel sport between the lines but chaotic outside of them, with an unseeded group winning as often as the top seed does.
Star power means less than you think it would. Half of our four current Big League Braddahs, Rico Garcia (Saint Louis) of the Orioles and Joey Cantillo (Kailua) of the Guardians, never won a game at states. Legends like Mike Lum of Roosevelt and Shane Victorino of St. Anthony didnât even get to suit up.
Bostonâs Isiah Kiner-Falefa won a state title with Mid-Pacific in 2013, the leadoff man setting up Quintin-John Collier and Marcus Doi with four hits in the first round. I thought he was a masterful shortstop with a nice swing but would be just another guy if he grew up in the Dominican Republic. Thatâs part of the beauty of it. Scouts can aim their radar guns at Jordan Yamamoto vs. Kodi Medeiros, but even the best prognosticator can only guess at what a teen will grow up to be.
At the highest levels, the best team rarely reveals itself until at least 50 baseball games. But in the prep version it always does. With apologies to Rory Picoâs 2014 Campbell crew and Mark Hirayamaâs Mililani squad that same year, George Gusmanâs Crusaders were better.
I listen to sports talk radio in the morning, so I just have to make a list. Old timers will hoot and holler about Eric Kadookaâs Punahou dynasty from 2004 to 2010 and Dunn Muramaruâs teams from the early 1990s. Older futs will tell you about a rotation of Derek Tatsuno and Gerald Ako for Aiea, Glenn Ouraâs ironman performance for Baldwin and Glenn Goyaâs perfect game for Punahou.
Every opinion is valid, but I need numbers. In baseball, all you are trying to do is go home and prevent the other team from touching the plate, which is shaped like a house for a reason. So, the best I can do is measure run differential and divide it by innings played because in ancient times boys were men and played nine innings whereas now we stop after five if someone is being beaten too badly. Oura threw 50 1/3 of Baldwinâs 59 innings in the first two tournaments, but the concept of child abuse didnât apply to baseball.
What the spreadsheet spit out was that Kadookaâs last champion, the 2010 Punahou Buffanblu, are the most dominant team in state baseball history. They scored 37 runs and gave up only four over 24 innings on Maui despite finishing third in the ILH and suffering five losses and a tie before boarding the plane. So congratulations to Kainoa Crowell, Kaiana Eldredge, Alakaâi Aglipay, sophomore pitcher Zachery Muenster and others, for four days in May you guys were so much better than your peers.
Those Buffanblu beat Mililani 12-0, Pearl City 8-1, Mid-Pacific 4-1 and Baldwin 13-2 for a run differential per inning of 1.38.
Next on the elite list is 1979 Radford (1.30, with the best offense in history at 1.74 runs per inning), 1988 Kamehameha (1.22) and 1975 âIolani tied with 1970 Kalani (1.12). Saint Louis of 2014 is the best team of recent vintage at 1.04. The scrappy team that won with the lowest number was 2024 Baldwin (0.14) with their scheduled opponents, 2024 Maui, at 0.21. Even if the weather did let them play, they might be in the 3,000th inning right now trying to settle it.
Two champions, 1975 âIolani and Farrington in 1963, did not allow a single run in their tournaments.
As you settle into your seat, you might not see a team like Punahouâs 2010 juggernaut, but no matter what happens you will walk away surprised. Itâs baseball.
Year
Team
RF
RA
Innings
Diff/Inn
2010
Punahou
37
4
24
1.38
1979
Radford
40
10
23
1.30
1988
Kamehameha
33
5
23
1.22
1970
Kalani
33
5
25
1.12
1975
Iolani
28
0
25
1.12
2007
Punahou
29
7
20
1.10
1990
Mid-Pacific
31
9
21
1.05
2014
Saint Louis
28
1
26
1.04
1997
Iolani
32
11
21
1.00
1962
Leilehua
33
9
25
0.96
1972
Punahou
27
3
25
0.96
1973
Aiea
25
2
25
0.92
1965
Kailua
19
3
18
0.89
1992
Mid-Pacific
27
8
22
0.86
2018
Baldwin
31
15
19
0.84
1966
Punahou
15
2
16
0.81
1999
Molokai
24
7
23
0.74
2017
Maui
32
13
26
0.73
1968
Punahou
17
4
18
0.72
2019
Punahou
21
6
21
0.71
2002
Mid-Pacific
30
11
27
0.70
2005
Punahou
16
3
19
0.68
2000
Molokai
35
21
21
0.67
2008
Punahou
22
8
21
0.67
1991
Mid-Pacific
18
4
21
0.67
1969
Kailua
21
3
27
0.67
1987
Kamehameha
46
24
35
0.63
1995
Baldwin
19
6
21
0.62
1974
Saint Louis
26
10
26
0.62
1977
Iolani
26
9
28
0.61
1996
Iolani
23
6
28
0.61
2025
Saint Louis
21
4
28
0.61
1959
Baldwin
19
4
25
0.60
2016
Baldwin
15
4
21
0.52
1980
Kamehameha
24
10
27
0.52
1963
Farrington
9
0
18
0.50
1982
Maui
22
9
27
0.48
1961
Punahou
18
5
27
0.48
1976
Aiea
17
4
27
0.48
1989
Punahou
31
14
37
0.46
1993
Kaiser
22
12
22
0.45
1964
Punahou
13
5
18
0.44
2006
Punahou
26
13
30
0.43
2001
Kailua
24
15
21
0.43
2004
Punahou
18
6
28
0.43
1981
Kaiser
18
6
28
0.43
2012
Waiakea
12
3
21
0.43
2023
Kamehameha
13
5
21
0.38
1998
Iolani
20
9
29
0.38
1960
Baldwin
18
7
30
0.37
1994
Castle
16
6
28
0.36
2003
Kamehameha
16
9
21
0.33
1978
Campbell
16
7
27
0.33
2015
Campbell
11
4
21
0.33
2013
Mid-Pacific
10
3
21
0.33
1967
Kailua
7
1
18
0.33
2011
Pearl City
23
14
28
0.32
1985
Hilo
22
14
27
0.30
1986
Iolani
21
12
36
0.25
2009
Punahou
10
3
28
0.25
2022
Waiakea
14
9
21
0.24
1984
Baldwin
21
14
31
0.23
1983
Iolani
24
18
27
0.22
1971
Iolani
14
8
27
0.22
2024
Maui
7
4
14
0.21
2024
Baldwin
13
10
21
0.14
Q&A
What is the Wally Yonamine State Baseball Tournament?
The Wally Yonamine State Baseball Tournament is an annual baseball championship in Hawaii, celebrating its 65th edition this year.
When does the 2023 Wally Yonamine State Baseball Tournament start?
The tournament begins next Thursday at Hans LâOrange Park.
How many teams have won the Wally Yonamine State Baseball Tournament?
There have been 66 champions crowned in the history of the tournament.
Why is the Wally Yonamine State Baseball Tournament considered unpredictable?
The tournament is known for its chaotic nature, where unseeded teams often win, challenging the expectations set by star players.