Fullerton's Suzuki on whirlwind schedule

By Leila Wai
Advertiser Staff Writer

For the first time in two days, Kurt Suzuki has been able to relax.

Baldwin alum Kurt Suzuki is one of three finalists for the Johnny Bench Award, which will be presented tonight in Kansas. Associated Press

"The last few days it's been racing, there are so many things we had to do," said the All-America catcher for Cal State Fullerton. "I still can't believe it."

In the days since leading the Titans to a College World Series title, the junior from Wailuku, Maui, has been on the move non-stop.

And he's not done yet.

Tonight, Suzuki completes what is probably his final task as a college player, when he attends the Greater Wichita Sports Banquet as a finalist for the Johnny Bench Award as the National Collegiate Catcher of the Year.

The 2001 Baldwin High graduate, who was named to six All-America teams, is one of three finalists for the award, which is voted on by a panel of sports media, Division I coaches and scouts.

A final vote among members of the selection committee occurred during the College World Series in Omaha, Neb., where Suzuki had the game-winning RBI single Sunday as the Titans upset top-ranked Texas, 3-2.

"It's pretty exciting, it wouldn't be a better ending to my season than to pick up another piece of hardware to go along with winning a national championship," said Suzuki, who is 6 feet 1 and 200 pounds. "It's an honor to be a finalist."

The other finalists are South Carolina's Landon Powell and North Carolina's Chris Iannetta.

Fullerton eliminated Powell and South Carolina from the World Series, while North Carolina was ousted by South Carolina in a Super Regional.

All the honors Suzuki received fueled the hype surrounding the World Series, creating a distraction he could have done without.

"This year it was a little bit different, I had a lot of people talking to me," he said. "It was stressful, before the games I had people who wanted to interview me and talk to me."

It might have affected Suzuki, who was 2 for 20 in the tournament before his clinching single.

"I was trying to hit the ball as hard as I could and I found a seam in the infield," he said of Sunday's game-winning hit. "Obviously, I had nothing to show for the World Series, I was hitting the ball as hard as I was hitting it the whole season.

"It was kind of like I was happy, but I was still nervous, because a one-run lead against Texas isn't safe."

Suzuki said the team enjoyed a "late night" Sunday, then on Monday had a meeting to discuss ring and shirt sizes, and followed that with a visit to a local children's hospital.

"They were pretty pumped up," he said of the children.

While the rest of the team flew back to Fullerton, Calif., for a parade and rally yesterday, Suzuki — along with parents Warren and Kathleen, and his position coach — traveled to Wichita, Kan., for the banquet.

Organizers sent a limousine for the group. "It wasn't bad at all," Suzuki joked about the 4 1/2-hour drive.

He spent the time reflecting on the events of the past few days.

"Every time I look at my national championship cap, it's a dream come true for me and I can't ask for anything more," Suzuki said.

NOTES: Kurt Suzuki's next stop will likely be Vancouver, British Columbia, home of the Oakland Athletics' short-season Class A team. Suzuki was drafted in the second round, 67th overall. ... Suzuki's most recent All-America honor was his selection to the Rawlings/Am-erican Baseball Coaches Association first team. Baseball America, Louisville Slugger and CollegeBaseballInsider.com selected Su-zuki to their first teams, while Sports Weekly All-America and National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association made him a second-team selection.

Reach Leila Wai at lwai@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2457.