Future archaeologists should be able to piece together the University of Hawaii’s 2018 baseball season through medical charts.

“It was the toughest season I’ve gone through for a lot of reasons,” said coach Mike Trapasso, whose 17th UH season ended with Saturday’s 10-6 victory over UC Santa Barbara. “The past six weeks, in particular, were the toughest I had a team go through with all the injuries.”

Earlier in the season, Jackson Rees, the staff’s ace, suffered a cut on the middle finger of his right (pitching) hand that forced him to depart prematurely from two games and miss a start in another. The unkindest cut, figuratively, was the loss of starting pitchers Neil Uskali and Dominic DeMiero. They suffered arm ailments while warming up in the bullpen on back-to-back days. Uskali, who will need elbow surgery, and DeMiero did not pitch at all this month. Rees, Uskali and DeMiero missed nine starts because of injuries.

Right-handers Logan Pouelsen (arm tenderness) and Cade Smith (oblique muscle) were unavailable to pitch for two-week periods because of ailments. Colin Ashworth missed most of the season after suffering an ankle injury. On Friday, Brody Hagel-Pitt departed in the fourth inning after a line drive struck his left foot. Hagel-Pitt, a senior who was not used in the first 25 games, was pressed into the starting rotation three weeks ago because of the injuries.

The ’Bows were 7-5 in the Big West after defeating eventual league champion Cal State Fullerton on April 22. But then the ’Bows lost the following afternoon. A week later, Uskali and DeMiero were lost for the rest of the season. The ’Bows won only four of their final 12 Big West games. The ’Bows finished 27-24 overall — their second consecutive winning season — but 11-13 in the Big West.

“I really feel bad for our guys,” Trapasso said. “We were right there in the hunt, and really had something going. You can’t lose five, six pitchers in a six-week period and survive that. Nobody can, especially when it’s five of your top seven, and at one point, six of your top seven.”

Hours after the season finale, Trapasso focused on the 2019 team. The next several days, he will visit the mainland recruits who already signed with the ’Bows. Some are expected to be selected in next week’s Major League Baseball Draft.

Trapasso said he will add to the recruiting class, with pitchers and another catcher atop the wish list. The ’Bows have two catchers on the projected 2019 roster — Tyler Murray, who played in 18 games, and Dallas Duarte, a 2018 Kamehameha-Hawaii graduate. Trapasso expects Kekai Rios, who completed his junior season, to be drafted.

Hunt for more arms

As for pitchers, Trapasso said: “You’re always looking for arms. There’s no question about that. You can never have enough.”

Rees, who completed his junior year, is viewed as a probable draft selection. He already has earned a bachelor’s degree, but has expressed a willingness to return to UH for his senior season if he is not selected in a favorable round.

As a third-year sophomore, closer Dylan Thomas also could be drafted. But Thomas still will have negotiating leverage next year. He also is set to pitch in the prestigious Cape Cod Baseball League this summer, where he can work on a complementary pitch to his slider.

Shortstop Maaki Yamazaki said he would strongly consider signing if he were drafted. He said his age (22) would be a consideration in his decision.

“We’ll see what happens,” Trapasso said. “We hope most of them return. If they get drafted, that’s good for them and good for our program. Obviously, we have a lot of quality guys coming back, we think.”

Fogel headed to center?

Adam Fogel, who led the ’Bows in several offensive categories, will be a junior next year. Fogel has played first base and the corner-outfield positions but is projected to succeed Dylan Vchulek in center field next season. Fogel also will play in Cape Cod this summer.

“I’ve never sent a kid to the Cape Cod League who didn’t come back a better player,” Trapasso said. “Even if they struggle, they come back better. He’s going to have a great time.”

Despite missing 14 games because of a wrist injury, Ethan Lopez played well after shifting from outfield to third. Of his 39 hits, 17 went for extra bases (six homers, 11 doubles). Lopez and Dustin Demeter, who hit .365 in Big West games, will play in Vancouver this summer.

Cade Smith and Jeremy Yelland each had a roller-coaster freshman season. Both could be in the starting rotation next season. Yelland is an intriguing left-hander whose fastball can reach the mid-90s. In 291⁄3 innings, he struck out 32 but walked 18.

“When Jeremy Yelland is throwing strikes on a consistent basis, he can pitch in any role and be effective,” Trapasso said. “His main thing is to get some quality innings.”

Two years after undergoing elbow surgery, Pouelsen showed he can be efficient as a starter or reliever. “He’ll get better,” Trapasso said.

Three years ago, Trapasso emphasized recruiting physical players to compete in the Big West.

“We almost overdid it to a point where we lost a little bit of athleticism from a speed standpoint,” Trapasso said. “We feel we addressed that this (past) fall with our recruiting class.”

This past year, the ’Bows hit 26 home runs but stole 10 bases in 22 attempts.

“It’s all about getting better,” Trapasso said. “We need to get better. There’s no question about that. In this league, you’re either getting better or you’re getting worse. … We’ve been trending upward. We need to stay healthy, but we also need to get better.”