Whatever Happened...to Ryan Kurosaki

Whatever Happened...
An update on past news


Wednesday, January 29, 1997

Ex-hurler Kurosaki
lives in Arkansas

What ever happened to Ryan Kurosaki, 1970 Kalani High School graduate who played Oahu Interscholastic Association baseball, then went on to pitch for the University of Nebraska and later the St. Louis Cardinals, the first American of Japanese ancestry to play in the major leagues.
Ryan Kurosaki, the first AJA to play in a major league game, in 1975, is a firefighter in Little Rock, Ark.

He helped Kalani High School win the state high school baseball championship in 1970. One of his teammates was Lenn Sakata, who went on to play 11 seasons in the major leagues and coach in Japan.

The 1970 season launched Kurosaki into three years of pitching for Nebraska, where he was a big winner. The Cardinals drafted him and assigned him to their Little Rock farm team, where he quickly compiled a 4-0 record with four saves and no earned runs in 21 innings. He went up to the Cardinals and, on May 20, 1975, got called from the bullpen to shut down the San Diego Padres.

He came out of the bullpen seven times that season and pitched a total of 12 innings for the Cardinals. He had no decisions and no saves, and that was his entire major league career.

Kurosaki is now with a fire engine company in downtown Little Rock. He and his wife have three sons. Two play baseball.

Although the first AJA to play in the majors, Kurosaki was not the first person of Japanese ancestry to play in the majors. The first was Masanori Murakami, a Japan native who was a relief pitcher with the San Francisco Giants in 1964 and 1965.



Hawaii no minor
player in majors
Agbayani is the 22nd
Hawaii player to make it
to the 'bigs'

By Al Chase
Star-Bulletin

Benny Agbayani's five-season apprenticeship in the minor leagues culminated with his recent call-up to the major leagues by the New York Mets.

Although the former St. Louis School and Hawaii Pacific University standout made a return trip to Norfolk (Va.) in the International League after a week with the Mets, he was called up again last Wednesday.

Agbayani, a 5-foot-11, 175-pounder, was the starting left fielder for the Tides.

He is the 22nd player from Hawaii (played high school or college ball here) to make it to the majors.

The first was Johnnie "Honolulu Johnnie" Williams, who spent the 1914 season with the Detroit Tigers after three successful seasons in the Pacific Coast League.

Williams, a 6-foot, 180-pound right-hander, relied on a blazing fastball. He led the PCL in winning percentage (.708) in 1913 with a 17-7 record. After the season, the Sacramento Sacts sold his contract to Detroit.

Tony Rego, who was born in Wailuku and played ball on Maui before entering the U.S Armed Forces during World War I, had a two-year stint (1924-25) with the St. Louis Browns.

Henry "Price" Oana is the only Hawaii player to make it to the majors as a position player and as a pitcher. A minor league slugger, he first appeared with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1934. The 6-2, 195-pound right-hander then pitched for Detroit in 1943 and 1945.

There was a 22-year gap before the next Hawaii product made it to the majors, when Roosevelt High School's Mike Lum began a long career in the big leagues with the Atlanta Braves in 1967.

Since then, there has been a steady flow of Hawaii talent in the majors.

Prior to Agbayani's promotion, Scott Karl of the Milwaukee Brewers was the most recent player with 50th State ties to get the call (1995). Karl, a left-hander, recently signed a three-year, $7 million contract.


Hawaii's Major Leaguers

Player School Debut Team
Johnnie Williams St. Louis/Punahou 4/21/1914 Detroit Tigers
Tony deRego no high school 6/21/1924 St. Louis Browns
Henry Oana St. Louis 4/22/1934 Philadelphia Phillies
Mike Lum Roosevelt 9/12/1967 Atlanta Braves
John Matias Farrington 4/7/1970 Chicago White Sox
Ryan Kurosaki Kalani 5/20/1975 St. Louis Cardinals
Doug Capilla Kailua 9/12/1976 St. Louis Cardinals
Lenn Sakata Kalani 7/21/1977 Milwaukee Brewers
Fred Kuhaulua Waianae 8/2/1977 California Angels
Joey DeSa Damien 9/6/1980 St. Louis Cardinals
Scott Loucks Leilehua 9/1/1981 Houston Astros
Carlos Diaz Castle 6/30/1982 Atlanta Braves
Sid Fernandez Kaiser 9/20/1983 Los Angeles Dodgers
Glenn Braggs U. of Hawaii 7/18/1986 Milwaukee Brewers
Chuck Crim U. of Hawaii 4/8/1987 Milwaukee Brewers
Chuck Jackson U. of Hawaii 5/26/1987 Houston Astros
Mike Campbell U. of Hawaii 7/4/1987 Seattle Mariners
Joey Meyer U. of Hawaii 4/4/1988 Milwaukee Brewers
Mike Fetters Iolani 9/1/1989 California Angels
Bruce Walton U. of Hawaii 5/11/1991 Oakland Athletics
Scott Karl U. of Hawaii 5/4/1995 Milwaukee Brewers
Benny Agbayani St. Louis/HPU 6/18/1998 New York Mets