All-BIIF baseball: Kamehameha senior enjoys fruits of his labor

Kobi Candaroma took Kamehameha coach Andy Correa’s advice to heart: work hard during the offseason, and return to the BIIF diamond as a better ballplayer.

As a freshman, Candaroma didn’t play much for the Warriors, and was a part-time starter the following season.

He hit the weight room in a serious manner, and produced a monster junior year (.432, 27 RBIs, 1.114 OPS/5-0, 1.08 ERA), but was overlooked in the All-BIIF voting.

In his senior season, Candaroma batted .532 with two homers, 15 RBIs, posted a .614 on-base percentage and a whopping 1.423 OPS.

The 5-foot-9 center fielder led Kamehameha to a fourth consecutive BIIF Division II title, landed a scholarship to UH-Manoa and finally experienced the satisfaction that hard work pays off.

Candaroma was named the BIIF Division II Player of the Year, following in the footsteps of former teammates Chay Toson last year, and Bronson Pulgados in 2013.

“It’s well-deserved. He’s really worked hard to get where he is,” said Correa, the BIIF coach of the year. “He’s a good team leader, and set a good example for a lot of the other players.

“He’s got a lot of personality, very likable kid, very hard-working, one of those who’s a joy to coach. He brought a lot of energy, and you could see it on the field. He kept working on his game, and kept getting better every year.”

Joining Candaroma on the first team are five teammates in senior pitcher Malu Peralta (7-0, 0.96 ERA), freshman catcher DallasJ Duarte (.346, 13 RBIs, .914 OPS), sophomore first baseman Kobie Kinzie (.276, eight RBIs, .772), junior second baseman Daylen Calicdan (.404, three homers, 18 RBIs, 1.215 OPS) and junior third baseman Makana Aiona (.426, 21 RBIs, 1.068) — all first-time starters, except for Calicdan.

Rounding out the first team are Hawaii Prep first baseman DJ Sekiya and utility Cyrus Inglis, Konawaena shortstop Shelton Grace and outfielder Kelsey Katayama, and Kohala outfielder Kainalu Emeliano-Solomon.

Candaroma didn’t pitch much because of shoulder tendinitis, but instead made an impact with his speed, going 9 for 9 in steal attempts and running down flyballs. He’s been clocked in the 60-yard dash in 6.6 seconds; major league average is 6.8 seconds.

“Of course, he had his speed, but he did a lot of work on his own,” Correa said. “For us, we preach: don’t come back as the same player. The offseason is the time to put in the work, and it’s nice when they come back better when they left, and Kobi kept going.”

Correa envisions a bright future for Candaroma at UH. In the perfect timing department, Kaeo Aliviado completed his senior season, and there will be a job opening in center field.

“Kobi’s best baseball is still ahead of him. He has to learn to hit college-level pitching,” Correa said. “He has good reflexes, so hitting the fastball shouldn’t be a problem. His speed will get him on the field early.

“He took time and effort to become a good base runner. He wasn’t just fast. He worked on leads and jumps. He was also good at passing down information to others on the team. When he led base-running drills, it was something he took pride in.”

Peralta was there from the beginning, and remembered the raw product Candaroma was as a freshman.

“He was skin and bones. He always had the speed, but no one thought he’d be the size he is now, compared to what he was,” Peralta said. “He had that drive. Not a lot of people have that.”

Peralta pointed out that Candaroma’s best tool is an intangible.

“If there is one guy who brings everyone together and says something no one will forget, it’s Kobi,” Peralta said. “He was definitely a motivator on our team. In and out of the game, he’d always be there for you. He was a leader of the team.”

The Kamehameha ace pitcher didn’t need to search long to recall Candaroma’s most memorable line.

“The one I remember most is hard work will get you places,” Peralta said.

If Candaroma was good at anything, it was definitely following his own advice.