George learned to pitch rather than throw

By Stacy Kaneshiro
Advertiser Staff Writer

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What: Collegiate baseball Who: Hawai'i-Hilo (5-25) vs. Hawai'i-Manoa (8-3) When: 6:35 tonight, 1:05 p.m. tomorrow Where: Les Murakami Stadium Parking: $3 Tickets: $6 blue and orange levels; $5 red level (adults); $4 red level (65-years-and-old, students K-12 and UH students with IDs) Radio: KKEA AM 1420 TV: K5, tomorrow only Series history: UHM leads series 95-19; UHM won last meeting, 8-2, on Feb. 11 Probable starters: Tonight—UHH RH Robert Shimabuku (0-4, 9.00) vs. UHM RH Chris George (3-0, 1.93) Tomorrow—UHH RH Brian Ebbs (2-5, 11.66) vs. UHM LH Justin Cayetano (1-1, 2.70)

If Hawai'i starting pitcher Chris George arrived on time last year, he might have had a better season. He might have been drafted. He might have signed. The Rainbows might not be off to an 8-3 start, their best since opening 9-2 in 1999.

George leads the UH pitching staff at 3-0 with a 1.93 earned run average. He has the team's only complete game. He has allowed fewer hits (21) than innings pitched (23¡) and has struck out 22 while walking eight.

"I've matured a little bit," George said of this season's early success. "I've learned to pitch a little more. I think last year, at times, I was just out there throwing. This year, I have a good plan that I'm trying to stick to."

Last year, George did not have time to follow a plan. After playing two seasons at Cypress (Calif.) College, he missed the fall semester trying to complete his associate's degree so he could transfer to UH. He enrolled two weeks into the spring semester, arriving four days before the team's season opener against Florida State. He had made three relief appearances before making his starting debut Feb. 23 against Brigham Young, netting a no-decision after allowing three runs in 6¡ innings. Despite the late start, the 6-foot-2, 176-pound right-hander from Santa Cruz, Calif., still finished as UH's winningest pitcher at 6-6, but his ERA was 5.91.

As a junior, George was eligible for the draft. The semester he missed could have made a difference in his performance.

"He was on a lot of scouts' radar screens last year," said UH coach Mike Trapasso. "But like most of them felt, we thought he needed one more year of college."

George spent the summer as he did the year before pitching for the San Francisco Seals in a summer collegiate league. In fall workouts, the coaches worked on lowering George's arm angle.

Besides working on mechanics, Trapasso also wanted George developing his approach to pitching. He said sometimes George would get caught up in his own competitiveness and overthrow, rather than pitch.

"When he gets in a bind, he's a very competitive guy and he'll just want to throw a ball by a guy instead of thinking command," Trapasso said. "Almost 90 percent of the time, maybe even more that last year and even this year, when he's struggled, it's always been on not throwing the fastball where he wants to in the strike zone."

During fall practice, George was told to focus on fastball command.

"We took away his best pitch this fall," Trapasso said. "We wouldn't let him throw his slider and we really went fastball, change. He's got a good arm, but I tell him there are a lot of days when he's better and more effective at 86-87 miles an hour than 88-89. When he's 88-89, he's overthrowing, his fastball's flat and he doesn't have command. He's matured in that area and so far and it has helped him."

George is taking the right direction toward achieving his goal of playing professionally. He said he had heard about getting drafted last year, but was wise enough not to get his hopes high.

"Actually, it was all the best that I came back here," he said. "I'm a better pitcher now than I was last year."