Hawaiian has ridden wild wave through major-league system

Friday, Aug. 22, 2003 | 9:04 a.m.

BIG LEAGUE ISLANDERS

51S SNAPSHOT

In addition, he hit home runs in back-to-back games, Tuesday and Wednesday night, for the first time in Triple-A ball.

In his 10th minor-league season, Murray hit .264, near his nine-year average of .267. He hit .231 in 277 Major League at-bats that spanned four seasons, and sources could not confirm his future plans.

It was the fifth loss in six games for Las Vegas against Sacramento.

Soon enough, maybe Shane Victorino will sport a catchy nickname like fellow Hawaiian Islanders "Prince" Oana, "Honolulu Johnnie" Williams or Benny "Hawaiian Punch" Agbayani.

Because of the twists his career has taken over the past eight months, nothing would surprise this fleet-footed 51s outfielder from Maui.

At this point, he doesn't even rule out kicking and playing wide receiver one day for University of Hawaii coach June Jones.

"Possibly," said Victorino, 22. "I could see it happening, but I don't really want to think about it. My mind is set on being a major-league baseball player."

In 1999, the Dodgers plucked him out of Wailuku, Hawaii, in the sixth round of the draft. Later that day, Jones called with his scholarship offer, and Victorino would have also played baseball for the Warriors.

He accepted a $115,000 bonus to sign with the Dodgers.

In December, the San Diego Padres surprised Victorino by taking him in the Rule V Draft, for $50,000. They pulled that off because the Dodgers did not have Victorino on their 40-man roster.

The moment the Padres did not carry him on their 25-man roster during the season, the Dodgers would get the Rule V right to buy him back for $25,000. That happened May 23, when he was batting .151.

He was designated for assignment when the Padres claimed Gary Matthews Jr. off waivers. The Dodgers exercised their option by re-obtaining Victorino, a 5-foot-9, 160-pound switch hitter, and sending him to Double-A Jacksonville. He hit .282, going 16-for-23 in steals, for the Suns.

He got called up to Triple-A Las Vegas last Wednesday, and is 6-for-16 for the 51s.

"It was an honor, going in the Rule V (draft)," Victorino said. "Not many kids get that opportunity."

It is considered a gamble in that one team (the Padres) believes a player can make its 25-man roster while another (the Dodgers) isn't even carrying him on its 40-man squad.

"To make that (San Diego) team was one thing," he said. "Then, to find out I was getting sent back (to the Dodgers). Wow, what a shock. You go from one extreme to another. I'm 'here,' then I'm back 'there.' "

In San Diego, he belted two doubles in 73 at-bats. He was caught stealing in his first two attempts, then swiped seven in a row. He went 6-for-25 in a rare seven-game stretch as a starter in late April, but he mostly sat on the bench.

Between utility players Dave Hansen and Keith Lockhart. There, Victorino watched and listened.

"An experience of its own," Victorino said. "I learned so much. Of course, it was tough not playing. We're losing, 11-0, and I'd pinch-hit or go in for defensive purposes. It was nerve-racking."

When Victorino was thrown into the outfield late against San Francisco at Qualcomm Stadium on April 2, he became the 27th native of Hawaii -- and second from Maui -- to play in a major-league game.

Tony Rego, a catcher born Antone DoRego in Wailuku, hit .286 in 44 games for the St. Louis Browns in 1924 and '25. He died, at the age of 80, in Tulsa, Okla., in 1978.

"Honolulu Johnnie" Williams, a pitcher, became the first Hawaiian to play in the majors in 1914. However, he threw in only four games for Detroit, going 0-2.

"It's a unique thing," Victorino said. "When I get back home, it's like an honor to have the young kids look up to you. I remember when I was growing up, when even if a guy was in the minor leagues you looked up to him.

"Like, 'Wow, some day I want to be like you.' "

In Wailuku, in the cup of Kahului Bay to the north of Maui, Victorino often takes 10 or 15 neighborhood kids to a nearby diamond to teach and coach them.

"You feel honored, that people want you to help them," he said. "Little kids look up to you and want you to be their role model."

Older brother Michael taught him drive. Michael had ability in various sports, but he became a husband and father at an early age and is now an inter-island longshoreman. The Victorino brothers' father is an insurance agent.

The student body at St. Anthony, a private Catholic school, consisted of 400, and Shane Victorino's graduating class was 50. He won state sprint championships at 100, 200 and 400 meters.

Jones believed Victorino would have made a fine punter, beating everyone else downfield on coverage, and wide receiver or defensive back.

If he steals 24 more bases in the big leagues, Victorino will pass Lenn Sakata for the top spot on the Hawaiian-born charts.

"Baseball is starting to become a big thing in the state of Hawaii," he said, "so that's a good thing."

So was how he treated what was essentially a two-level demotion, from the Padres to the Jacksonville Suns.

"It humbles a guy, but you also have to look at it like, when you walk into that (Jacksonville) locker room, a lot of guys look up to you ... they got to see me on TV," Victorino said. "There's a sense of leadership."

Going to Jacksonville with an attitude would have alienated many of those with whom he played last season. Instead, he attacked his responsibilities with zeal every day, helping those who sought his counsel.

Victorino speaks with Jerome Williams, a Honolulu-born, 6-3 right-hander who won five consecutive starts for the San Francisco Giants this summer, about once a week on their cell phones.

"Keep working hard, and you'll be back soon," said Williams, 21.

"And he's younger than me," Victorino said. "How can he say something to me when I'm older than him? But, you still listen."

In his seven years as San Diego's general manager, Kevin Towers said Victorino is one of the finest defensive outfielders he has seen. Padres outfield coach Davey Lopes compared him to Ruben Rivera and Steve Finley.

Being a dependable leadoff hitter, always threatening to turn walks into doubles with his speed and "not making stupid mistakes" are what Victorino said he must sharpen in Las Vegas.

"When I was sent back (to the minors), I said, 'Hey, it wasn't my time,' " he said. "I'll work hard to get back, so I can be an everyday player."

Victorino and a few fellow islanders continue to inspire kids back home, in the footsteps of The Hawaiian Punch, The Prince and Honolulu Johnnie.