In the afterglow of Hawaii’s 3-2 baseball victory over Nevada, pitcher Brendan Hornung and first baseman Logan Pouelsen stealthily approached and emptied a container of iced water onto third baseman Josh Rojas.
It was the only time Rojas was caught unprepared the entire Sunday afternoon at Les Murakami Stadium.
Rojas accounted for all three of the Rainbow Warriors’ runs and made a leaping grab of a screaming liner with two runners on base for the final out.
“That was my first ice bath,” Rojas said. “To be honest, it felt pretty good. That was a fun play to end the game. I don’t know what my vertical is, but I’m sure it’s a little higher when the ball is in the air.”
Another parting gift awaits Rojas. “I owe Josh a steak dinner,” said Dylan Thomas, who got the final six outs for his third save. “He made a great play.”
Rojas smiled, and said: “I’ll collect on that if he wants to offer that up.”
The ’Bows completed their nonconference schedule with an 18-9 record, their best start since 2007. They open Big West play in Friday’s road game against Cal Poly.
With Dylan Vchulek on third and Kekai Rios on first, Rojas slapped a fastball up the middle for a 1-0 lead in the first inning.
“Kekai got the steal sign, so I knew there would be some holes in the infield,” Rojas said. “I put it in play, and it got through.”
In the third, Rios reached when he was beaned for the fourth time this season. “If a (pitcher) hits a guy with a first-pitch fastball, usually the next fastball will be down the middle,” Rojas said. “I tried to attack it early. I got what I was guessing for.”
Rojas hit a first-pitch fastball to the wall in right-center for a triple, scoring Rios. Rojas made it 3-0 when he scored on Adam Fogel’s ground single past the shortstop.
UH coach Mike Trapasso has scripted a different batting order in each of the 27 games. But three times this weekend, Rojas batted cleanup. “He hits right-handed pitching pretty well,” Trapasso said. “He’s aggressive. You want a guy in the 4 hole who wants to drive in runs, wants to be aggressive.”
That was all the runs right-hander Neil Uskali would need. Uskali spaced seven hits, struck out seven and did not allow a walk in seven innings. After the Wolf Pack scored a run in the fourth and filled the bases with one out in the fifth, Trapasso visited the mound.
“That’s when he lost the feel of his change-up,” Trapasso said, referring to Uskali’s out pitch. “I went in there and got in his ear a little bit and told him he was being a little tentative. And I wasn’t really using ‘I care’ language. I got my point across. With him, that’s what he wants and what he responds to.”
Uskali then struck out Mike Echavia and induced Cole Krzmarzick to hit into an inning-ending groundout.
“The biggest thing today was the little talking I got,” Uskali said. “It helped me focus. I felt more engaged and locked in right after that conversation.”
In the eighth, Trapasso summoned Thomas to protect a 3-2 lead. Thomas conquered the lower-back ailment he suffered three weeks ago to become a two-inning closer. Trapasso said Thomas has the composure and a biting slider to finish games.
With two outs in the ninth, pinch hitter Kaleb Foster was hit by a Thomas pitch and then went to third on Joran Pearce’s single to right. Rojas figured right-hitting Justin Bridgman would get an inside slider to pull his way.
“You don’t want to be the guy who’s going to let one by you,” Rojas said. “The motivation is before the pitch even starts. Once the ball is hit, it’s reaction. It’s not let it get by.”
Of Rojas’ gravity-defying catch, Trapasso said: “That was the David Banner gamma rays. I don’t know if they know what that means. I don’t know if they know about the Hulk. It was a huge play. It won the game for us.”
