Highlights during Murakami's tenure

Advertiser Staff

• 1972

Hawai'i beats Brigham Young 6-5 on March 29 at Honolulu Stadium for Murakami's first collegiate victory.

• 1973

Saying he wants to find out how far the Rainbows are from being competitive on the collegiate level, Murakami takes his team to the Riverside (Calif.) Tournament, where the Rainbows go 1-7 and are outscored 65-26. The team includes first baseman-outfielder June Jones and infielder Artie Wilson.

• 1974

'Aiea High pitcher Gerald Ako becomes the Rainbows' first scholarship baseball player. He would enjoy a 24-11 record at UH.

• 1977

Pitchers Gerald Ako and Derek Tatsuno help put Hawai'i on the college baseball map. The Rainbows win 43 of 56 games and play in their first postseason tournament — the Western Regional at UH and Aloha Stadium. During the year, UH beats a Vanderbilt team that features major-league pitcher Scott Sanderson, and Arizona State, which boasts Bob Horner and Hubie Brooks. Les Murakami is named Hawai'i's Sportsman of the Year.

• 1978

What might have been Murakami's best team never gets to the NCAA playoffs because the Rainbows play only 53 (38-14-1) games.

• 1979

Murakami makes up for the previous year's slight by booking an NCAA-record 84 games (69-15). In the process, Tatsuno becomes college baseball's first 20-game winner (20-1) and the Rainbows set an NCAA record for single-game attendance (18,348) against Nevada-Las Vegas. For the first time in its history, UH is ranked No. 1 in the Collegiate Baseball poll in March.

• 1980

What is supposed to be a rebuilding year after the loss of six regulars becomes UH's most celebrated team when the Rainbows win the WAC in their first season, then win the Central Regional at Texas and advance to the championship game of the College World Series, where they lose to Arizona. Murakami is named Hawai'i's Sportsman of the Year. The season helps secure the political backing necessary to get the appropriation to build Rainbow Stadium.

• 1981

UH's return to the NCAA playoffs is derailed by Radford High graduate Peter Kendrick of Brigham Young, who beats them in both ends of a rained-out doubleheader makeup in Provo, Utah.

• 1982

Chuck Crim, who would become second only to Tatsuno (40) in career wins at UH (34), goes 10-4 and first baseman Howard Dashefsky leads team in hitting (.371) as the Rainbows return to the NCAA playoffs.

• 1983

Joey Meyer and Glenn Braggs, who would later become teammates with the Milwaukee Brewers, become the school's top two single-season home run leaders with 16 and 11, respectively.

• 1984

With workers bolting down the final seats as the turnstiles open, Rainbow Stadium debuts and the Rainbows make it back to the NCAA Tournament. UH attracts 104,177 in 42 dates to finish second in the nation in attendance.

• 1985

Murakami gets his 500th win in a March 16 victory over Murray State, 6-5.

• 1986

The Rainbows lead the nation in attendance with 114,367 in 44 dates and get to within a victory of returning to Omaha and the College World Series, losing to Loyola Marymount in the West Regional.

• 1987

Paul Brown pitches the only perfect game in school history, blanking Wyoming over seven innings, 5-0.

• 1991

Pitchers Billy Blanchette (14-2), Scott Karl (10-4) and Brady Perreira (7-2), and outfielder Tim Albert (.393 batting average) and catcher Todd Takayoshi (.350) help the Rainbows advance to the West Regional, where they beat host USC before falling to Creighton.

• 1992

Victory No. 800 for Murakami comes in an 11-3 win over Washington. Blanchette, Karl and Perreira also return and the Rainbows reach the finals of the West Regional before falling to Pepperdine. Blanchette is 8-3 with a 3.46 ERA and bats a team-leading .389. Karl is 14-2; Perreira 13-2.

• 1993

The last NCAA Tournament appearance before a seven-year drought sends the Rainbows to College Station, Texas.

• 1998

A 6-5 win over Fresno State on March 22 gives Murakami his milestone 1,000th victory.

• 1999

Murakami is inducted into the American Baseball Coaches' Association Hall of Fame.

Murakami Record

NCAA berths: 11

1977
|1979
1980
1982
1984
1986
1987
1989
1991
1992
1993

WAC titles: 6

1980
1982
1984
1987
1991
1992

Players to the Majors

• Glenn Braggs
• Mike Campbell
• Chuck Crim
• Larry Gonzales
• Chuck Jackson
• Mark Johnson
• Scott Karl
• Joey Meyer
• Bruce Walton
• Jay Spurgeon