Youth baseball: East tops West for state Cal Ripken title
By Kyle Sakamoto
Advertiser Staff Writer
Marcus Yoshii showed today he is the rare blend of youth with command of the strike zone.
Yoshii pitched a two-hitter with no walks and six strikeouts as the East team beat the West, 3-2, in the Cal Ripken (ages 13-15) State Tournament at Central O'ahu Regional Park.
Yoshii, a left-hander, threw 52 of his 69 pitches for strikes, and both runs against him in the seventh were unearned.
"Marcus had command of the strike zone," said East coach Eric Kadooka. "He was able to get ahead of the hitters primarily with fastballs, and he mixed it up in the later innings with off-speed stuff. He just threw a ton of strikes and our defense made some plays for him."
The East swept the best-of-three series, and qualified for the Pacific Southwest Regional, July 25 to Aug. 2 at El Segundo, Calif. The East defeated the West, 3-1, Saturday night.
Reach Kyle Sakamoto at ksakamoto@honoluluadvertiser.com.
