If Q ratings of personality and appeal were applied to college baseball, Tyler Murray would have that Mitt Factor.
As the University of Hawaii baseball team’s catcher, Murray is every pitcher’s best friend and head coach Mike Trapasso’s on-field consigliere. Murray has played through injuries, stinging foul tips, and stubborn arbitrators.
And after six years, during which he caught 36 different UH pitchers, Murray is entering his final series at Les Murakami Stadium.
“For it to finally come to an end, it’s tough,” Murray said. “My best memories I could say every year were with my teammates, and the bonds and friendships I made with them. They’re lifelong, for sure.”
Murray will be one of seven potentially departing Rainbow Warriors who will be honored following Sunday’s finale of the four-game series against UC San Diego. With pandemic-related restrictions eased to allow a limited number of spectators, Murray’s grandparents are making arrangements to attend the weekend series in person. This season, his grandparents, as well as four other family members, purchased and posed for cardboard cutouts of themselves that were placed in the stands behind home plate at Murakami Stadium.
“Every home game, I got to see them,” Murray said.
Murray was preparing for the rest of his life after the pandemic abbreviated UH’s 2020 season to 17 games. The NCAA granted the 2020 seniors an extra year provided their schools could find the funding. Donors quickly agreed to match the scholarship money Murray and pitcher Logan Pouelsen received during the 2019-20 academic year. Murray and Pouelsen — teammates at Huntington Beach (Calif.) High — agreed to return.
“They showed me they wanted us back,” said Murray, who earned a bachelor’s degree. “What’s not to love about another year in Hawaii? I couldn’t be more thankful. It was amazing those people wanted to see us back and play one more year. It was amazing for them to do that.”
Murray is fulfilling a dream that began when he first picked up a foam bat when he was 2. At age 6, he was a catcher, a position his father Ken Murray had played. “He taught me a lot about the game,” Murray said. “He still does to this day. … I take pride in my defense. We talk about that.”
Murray said he still has that first catcher’s mitt, a Mizuno, that he keeps at home. “It means a lot,” Murray said of the first true glove of his life. “It’s nice to look back and see where it all started.”
Murray committed to UH as a Huntington High senior. In June 2015, a month after Huntington won a CIF title, a car struck Murray’s truck. Murray’s 14-year-old cousin died in the accident. According to the Morning Call newspaper, the car driver was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence. Murray suffered a lung injury that would prevent him from air travel for a while. Also, he spent the 2015 fall semester recovering in California after undergoing shoulder surgery for an injury he suffered in high school. He joined UH for the 2016 spring semester, during which he redshirted.
Murray played summer ball that year, bridging to the start of a UH playing career in which he developed into a solid catcher.
“The neat thing about this game is seeing a guy mature and develop into his role,” Trapasso said. “You go from a green freshman to a mature fifth-, sixth-year senior. You develop that trust. That’s what we have.”
Murray receives the signs from Trapasso, then relays them to the pitcher. Between innings, Murray and Trapasso share observations.
“It’s a pretty cool relationship,” Murray said.
Trapasso added: “From a baseball standpoint, I’m glad he came back. … And he’s a good kid. He’s a really good kid.”
BIG WEST BASEBALL
At Les Murakami Stadium
>> Who: Hawaii vs. UC San Diego
>> When: Friday at 6:35 p.m., Saturday doubleheader at 1 p.m., Sunday at 1:05 p.m.
>> TV: Spectrum Sports
>> Radio: 1420-AM, 92.7-FM
