Second baseman Stephen Ventimilia has one thing going for him this season that he hasn’t had before.

“I’m feeling rested,” he said. “I think that was the biggest thing. I was physically tired. I took a break over the summer. I’ve been able to keep an even keel through the semester before and now leading up to this I think it’s going to help me a lot once we get into the grind of the season.”

Down time isn’t something the speedster from Monterey, Calif., embraces easily.

Ventimilia earned 13 letters in seven different sports in high school before attending UH, where he immediately won the starting second base job.

He played in all 55 games as a freshman, hitting .293 with 42 runs and 14 stolen bases. Once that season was over, he played a full summer with the Wenatchee Apple Sox in the West Coast League.

The workload seemed to take a toll as he struggled with injuries on the field in the fall of his sophomore season. He lost his starting job when the 2013 campaign began. Now, he’s back atop the depth chart heading into year three.

“I’m comfortable,” Ventimilia said. “I’m a third-year guy now so I think I’m used to the routine we have gotten into here.”

Switch-hitting for the first time in his career, Ventimilia is part of an athletic infield that should be a treat to watch.

With freshman Marcus Doi bringing a rare amount of athleticism to a position like first base and sophomore LJ Brewster sporting a plus arm at third, the Rainbow Warriors are set up very well defensively, which is key in a ballpark as big as Les Murakami Stadium.

“Going in I think it’s probably our strength,” Hawaii coach Mike Trapasso said. “We always try to recruit to defense first and focusing on eliminating the things that get you beat — walks by pitchers and errors by infielders.”

UH opened the fall five deep at catcher and that depth has already become critical heading into the season.

Junior Trevor Podratz is still recovering from a bone bruise in his wrist and senior Tyler Young is still roughly a month away from returning from major shoulder surgery he had performed in the offseason.

The team was dealt another blow when talented incoming freshman Chayce Ka‘aua was ruled academically ineligible, leaving junior Steven Pollakov and sophomore Alan Baldwin the only available catchers for last Saturday’s alumni game.

“Fortunately for us that’s the one area we’ve got some depth in,” Trapasso said. “Chase right now we’re still waiting on his appeal so he’s not eligible just yet but it’s an area we’re OK.”

Podratz has started 88 games in his first two seasons at UH, hitting .252 with 13 doubles, five home runs and 45 RBIs.

His injury is simply a matter of tolerance as doctors have cleared him to play.

If he can’t go, the Rainbow Warriors will likely turn to Pollakov, who didn’t play much after transferring in mid-year from Orange Coast College.

He played summer ball in the California Collegiate League, where he was discovered by UH assistant Rusty McNamara.

“He’s a solid kid, athletic, lots of energy, and he receives and blocks well,” Trapasso said.

With Marc Flores moving to the outfield, it opened a spot for Doi, a freshman, to begin his career at first base.

Doi was selected by the Chicago Cubs in the 25th round of last summer’s amateur draft but elected to go to school.

He’ll likely be the first true freshman to bat leadoff on opening night since Breland Almadova in 2010.

“We knew the day that the draft deadline passed and he was coming that he was going to be one of our best players,” Trapasso said. “It was a given even before our first practice.”