People of a certain age who grew up watching, reading about and playing baseball, might find it shocking to hear what Kallen Miyataki considers a central feature of his program.
“Really, the thing we’re having success with, and the direction we need to continue in is body building,” the University of Hawaii at Hilo coach said last week. “People hear that and don’t believe it, but it’s true, we have examples.”
Miyataki likes to have fun as much as anyone else and he understands the idea of body building in baseball is anathema to the tradition of the sport, but this probably isn’t the kind of body building that first comes to mind. Trainer Kensei Gibbs builds core strength and flexibility and can target specific muscle groups to enhance an athlete’s opportunity to succeed.
Jordan Kurokawa is currently the best example of the success of the training regimen and if his is not a name well-known to most baseball fans nationally, it is known to baseball scouts who keep coming around to watch and take notes.
“Probably,” Kurokawa said the other day, “this is one of the most important times in my life as far as my career is concerned. I work everyday on the things Kensei has me doing and I can say it definitely works, the difference has been amazing.”
Gibbs isolates smaller muscle groups for special attention and over the last three years, it has helped Kurokawa attract the attention of scouts as his fastball has risen in velocity from the low-to-mid 80 mph range to what is now, the low-to-mid 90s.
“He’s sitting on 92-93,” Miyataki said, “by which I mean he goes out and throws 92 or 93 all the time, but he will get up to 95, 96 or more. The more he works, the better he gets.”
The thing about throwing 92 or 93 on the Big Island with its heavy, wet air, is that scouts see those numbers and immediately adjust them to 95 or thereabouts. In Arizona, Kurokawa might be “sitting on” 95 or 96, which means he would be very much sought after in next spring’s Major League Baseball draft.
In reality, Kurokawa is a known commodity and needs only to continue in the direction he’s been headed to wear someone’s professional baseball uniform next summer.
“They know, trust me,” Miyataki said, “a couple have flown over (from Oahu), just to see him pitch for an hour or so, and I can tell from the questions they ask that the interest is real.”
When he arrived in Hilo as a freshman, Kurokawa said he was 6-foot-2, 160 pounds. His fastball was, to be kind, average. He has since gained an inch and 25 pounds as well as increasing his fastball velocity.
Gibbs weighed, measured and researched Kurokawa and then delivered the right-handed pitcher a series of stretches and core exercises.
“It was a struggle and it wasn’t an overnight thing,” Kurokawa said, “it’s a process you have to commit to and you have to believe in. If you’re looking for quick results, you’ll probably be disappointed and give up.”
Kurokawa’s determined approach has made all the difference.
“The number one thing in all of this is the kid’s state of mind,” said Miyataki. “None of what we do is going to help, is going to make you better, if you don’t have the will inside to believe and to do it day after day. There will always be ups and downs and if the player is one to get frustrated and give up, he will get nothing from this.”
Kurokawa has done more than simply follow instructions, for reasons.
“The program hadn’t been winning, people would say things like, ‘You can’t win there,’” Kurokawa said, “but I saw it differently. I wanted to be the guy who took the mound and everyone on the team felt like, ‘We’re going to win today.’ I want to be in the middle of this program getting better; there’s no reason we can’t win here, we might just have to want it and do more than others, but we can do it.”
Kurokawa has been exemplary in that regard. He is the most sought-after player in the program and heading into his most important season, what’s on top of his list of priorities?
“I really need to dig in on the books,” he said. “I do pretty well (academically), but I don’t want to let it slide right now, it’s a red flag for a scout to see someone who has a chance to get drafted and then quit on school. I don’t want them seeing red flags.”
There are no stop signs, warnings or cautions on Jordan Kurokawa. From the time he arrived in Hilo, it’s been a series of green lights pointing the direction to the on-ramp for the MLB draft.
(Send questions or comments to Bart at barttribuneherald.com)
