Monday marked the official start of spring practice for the 2014 University of Hawaii baseball team.

For pitcher Quintin Torres-Costa, it also marked his first day back on the mound in nearly a year.

The left-hander from Waiakea High was expected to throw off the mound for the first time since undergoing Tommy John surgery on his left elbow last May.

Recovery time is generally a full year after the surgery, but Torres-Costa has rehabbed well enough that he could be back midway through the season, potentially for the start of Big West Conference play at the end of March.

"My hopes are up," said Torres-Costa, the 2013 Hawaii high school state pitcher of the year. "I’m on a program that’s been going well that says I could be back by midseason if it goes well."

He’s one of three starting pitchers the Rainbow Warriors lost in the first month of a nightmare 2013 season in which they finished 16-35, their worst mark since coach Mike Trapasso’s first year since 2002.

Getting healthy on the mound will go a long way toward avoiding a similar outcome this year.

Junior Jarrett Arakawa, who missed all of 2013 with a shoulder injury, has thrown off a mound for more than a month and is now starting to cut it loose.

"January is where I started to let it go," said Arakawa, who went 7-6 with a 2.88 ERA two seasons ago. "I’m still trying to build up my arm strength, but I’m hoping and planning to be healthy for the whole season."

Arakawa and Andrew Jones, who is also recovering from Tommy John surgery, are much further along in their recoveries than Torres-Costa.

Trapasso, who enters his 13th season with a career record of 360-329, was careful not to put a definitive date on their return, saying Monday was just another day in their long roads back.

"This is something we’ve been working on for what seems like forever," Trapasso said. "The mind-set from August has been to make sure these guys get healthy because they are so important to our club.

"As of Monday, January 13th, they’re on the mend and they’re getting better every day."

Trapasso has taken steps to improve an offense that hit an anemic .239 as a team in 2013, ranking in the bottom 10 in the country in scoring, home runs and stolen bases.

Volunteer assistant coach Carl Fraticelli was promoted to lead hitting coach, replacing Chad Konishi, who had been Trapasso’s pitching coach for the past 12 years.

"Coach Frat has been a great coach," senior outfielder Kalei Hanawahine said. "He’s not the loudest guy. He’s not the most vocal, but he definitely possesses a lot of knowledge to allow our hitters to get better and I like what he’s bringing to our team."

Hawaii welcomes 15 newcomers to the team, including freshman Marcus Doi, the reigning Star-Advertiser high school state player of the year.

Doi was selected in the 25th round of last summer’s MLB draft but opted to go to UH instead and can play infield, outfield or even catch.

UH returns seven offensive players who started at least 30 games, including Hanawahine, who led the team with a .286 average.

Junior left-hander Scott Squier, who missed the final month of the season after he was suspended for violating team rules, has rejoined the team.

Despite an 0-6 record, Squier had a 3.44 ERA last season with 46 strikeouts in 55 innings. His return, along with senior Matt Cooper (3-8, 3.14 ERA, 69 K), and a healthy Jones and Arakawa could give UH a solid rotation entering a season that includes nonconference series at home against Oregon and Pepperdine and on the road at Texas.

The Ducks are ranked sixth and the Longhorns 20th in Collegiate Baseball’s preseason top 40, with Big West opponents Cal State Fullerton rated No. 1 in the country and Cal Poly 27th.