Central East Maui looking to repeat for Hawaii in Little League World Series

The Maui Little Leaguers have to win today and Sunday for Hawaii to claim back-to-back Little League World Series championships, but even if that doesn’t happen, teams from the Aloha State have proved they’re a force to be reckoned with in Williamsport, Pa.

It’s hard not to get excited about the possibility that the 13 Central East Maui 11- and 12-year-old players, their two coaches and manager could bring home Hawaii’s fourth Little League World Series win since 2005. With the championship loss to Japan in 2010, Hawaii’s five appearances are burnishing the state’s reputation as a Little League powerhouse.

But their place in Little League history isn’t what the Maui players were thinking about on the eve of today’s U.S. championship.

“They’re just trying to stay focused,” said Wailuku parent Derrick Chai, father of 12-year-old Caleb Chai.

But Derrick Chai the fan, although true to the Hawaii reputation of staying humble, was finding it hard to contain the excitement. “For Hawaii to win (in 2018) is big. To try and repeat would be even bigger,” he said.

The Maui players are following the fan-favorite tradition of last year’s team from Honolulu in Williamsport, where the players drape their opponents in lei and pass out chocolate-covered macadamia nuts and island cookies to fans.

“The majority of people come up and say, ‘We’re cheering for you guys,’” Derrick Chai said. “You go into the Little League shop and all the West jerseys and hats are sold out. When we played the team from New Jersey, they said, ‘We’re going to cheer for the West.’ It’s about being humble.”

Maui manager Brad Lung said the store sold out blue-and-yellow gear — the colors worn by the U.S. West champs — three times and no longer has any West inventory.

“Pretty much the only things that sold out is the West,” Lung said. “(Fans) are always asking the kids for autographs and pictures. I think it’s our aloha spirit. All the (Maui) kids are humble. They make friends quickly.”

Lung called the experience at Williamsport “very humbling for the coaches. We feel blessed to be part of this journey with the kids. I feel blessed most of all, more than anything.”

Maui Mayor Michael Victorino is paying his own way to Williamsport to watch the team this weekend.

“God willing, and with the prayers of the people of the County of Maui and state of Hawaii, I’m confident that they will be successful,” Victorino said in a statement. “The people of Hawaii have fallen in love with the members of this phenomenal team, and I’m so proud of how they have demonstrated good sportsmanship in representing not only Maui County but the entire state of Hawaii. I will be bringing some fresh ti leaves with me for continued good fortune to our team.”

Success might be breeding more success for Hawaii teams at the mecca of Little League baseball.

Waipio team manager Timo Donahue had watched Ewa Beach manager Layton Aliviado take Ewa Beach to the Little League World Series championship in 2005.

So anything seemed possible in 2008 when Donahue’s Waipio team traveled to Williamsport.

“Layton them did it, then we did it,” Donahue said. “Then we went again in 2010.”

Aliviado said everyone — players, coaches and parents — needs the right attitude to be successful.

“Drama is bad on a team,” Aliviado said. “Drama is going to bring the team down. I don’t like drama. … You’ve got to have the right kids, the right parents, the right coaches, then you can win.”

Sean “Big Sexy” Yamaguchi, a gregarious fan favorite last year at Williamsport, grew up watching his older brother, Michael, help his team win the Babe Ruth World Series, according to the boys’ father, Mike Yamaguchi. Sean also saw his brother win Player of the Game during a locally televised Cal Ripken league game.

“Sean said, ‘Wow, they’re on TV,’” Mike Yamaguchi said.

Then last year the Honolulu Little League World Series champs flew to Maui, where Yamaguchi met Caleb Chai — who had watched Yamaguchi on television hit a grand slam against New York in the U.S. Championship game.

“Boy, what an inspiration,” said Chai’s mother, Michelle. “That sparked quite a thing for the boys, meeting the championship team. The kids were super excited about that.”

Chai — now a seventh grader who’s missing classes at Kamehameha Schools’ Maui campus — still watches replays of the Honolulu team’s championship run on YouTube and can name every player, according to his parents.

Now Caleb Chai is in the same position.

And he wears his cap in the same style as Yamaguchi — “high on his head,” Derrick Chai said. “That comes straight out of Sean Yamaguchi.”

“We watched this last year on TV, and now to be here is an unbelievable feeling,” Derrick Chai said. “It’s an unreal experience.”

Last year’s championship manager, Gerald Oda, received helpful advice from the winning managers Alivi- ado and Donahue who went to Williamsport before him.

“They all said the same thing: ‘Just enjoy the moment,’” Oda said. “‘It’s going to go by fast, so basically, trust what you’ve been doing. Don’t second-guess yourself. Just go out and have fun. Let the kids enjoy being at the World Series.’ For some teams it’s, ‘Hey, we’re all about business and we’ve got to win,’ whereas I think the Hawaii guys said, ‘It’s once in a lifetime. Let the kids have fun when they’re off the field.’”

Oda, Aliviado and Donahue and their teams have been competing against each other on Oahu for years.

But Oda did not know Lung when Oda reached out to the Maui manager to offer support.

“Gerald has been a huge help, definitely,” Lung told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser on Friday night East Coast time right after the team’s last practice before today’s U.S. Championship game against River Ridge, La. “It was super cool that he did that.”

One of Oda’s many tips was to practice at an off-site, indoor baseball compound not used by any other team. It’s about 10 minutes away from curious fans and the media swarming around Howard J. Lamade Stadium.

“It’s a big warehouse with a restaurant, video games and a huge indoor facility,” Oda said. “It’s cooler and gets us away from everything. It helps the kids stay focused.”

Oda said he’s proud that the Maui team has shown the same humility and sportsmanship as the Hawaii teams that came before them.

“It’s almost like you’re part of this tradition,” Oda said. “We have a responsibility to show everybody that this is what it means to play with aloha. Let’s show the world this is what it means to be from Hawaii.”